Car-Hacking Prototype Passes Crash Test
Technology initially created for protecting US military unmanned aerial vehicles—aka drones—from cyberattacks soon will be available to help protect cars from hacking as well.
Researchers from the University of Virginia and Perrone Robotics recently completed a pilot track-test of cyberattacks on vehicles using prototype sensor technology from startup Mission Secure Inc. (MSi). They simulated cyberattacks on cars that attempted to take over the braking, acceleration, and collision avoidance features of the vehicles. Perrone provided the autonomous ground vehicles for the track tests, which implemented MSi’s sensors in the vehicles to detect and stop the cyber-sabotage of the cars.
The technology basically monitors for anomalous behavior by a car’s automated functions, and automatically corrects, for example, any malicious acceleration activity. It’s based on research and technology by UVA and the Department of Defense for protecting UAVs, which MSi in turn is developing into a commercial product for the auto industry called Secure Sentinal.