The development of connectivity and self-driving cars are making vehicles, especially heavy vehicles such as trucks, more vulnerable to cyber risks. Connectivity is changing the way we used to operate and manage the truck fleet. Fleet managers are now relying more and more on connected technology to, for example, improve the trucks’ uptime, safety, fuel efficiency, and tracking. However, this technology has also introduced new cybersecurity vulnerabilities to the commercial fleet. Due to the extensive connected features, the heavy commercial vehicles are more vulnerable than passenger vehicles. “Heavy vehicles have more avenues for remote access than light vehicles”, says Urban Jonson, chief technology officer for the National Motor Freight Traffic Association.
While the security concerns arise, the SK Telecom is bringing the world the Quantum Encryption Gateway that is supposed to make driving cars unhackable. The company claimed that the solution is an integrated security device developed together with South Korean controller maker GINT. The solution will be used to secure various systems in the vehicle, for example, V2X and Bluetooth communication systems, driver assistance, radar, and smart keys.
At the same time, a new vehicle cybersecurity rating scheme is close to its birth. The 5StarS consortium is seeking feedback from automotive manufacturers, governments and insurer to consolidate a paper on establishing an assurance framework to assess the cybersecurity level of vehicles. 5StarS aims to carry out an assurance framework that underpins the future assessments of the cybersecurity capabilities of new vehicles and how resilient they are to attacks. The framework includes meeting requirements of emerging regulation and standards such as ISO/SAE 21434 while carrying out a vulnerability assessment and proposes a “consumer-facing risk rating system”.
Written by Anne Faxér, RISE.
