Hackers New Targets are…Cars?

Cars are giant computers, and unfortunately, those computers can be hacked. In the 1990s, the cars being built were basically a closed box, so the computers were safe. But today, car’s computers are hooked up to the internet and the computers are much more complex than they used to be. CNN Money reports that “The space ship that put humans on the moon, Apollo 11, had 145,000 lines of computer code. The Android operating system has 12 million. A modern car? Easily 100 million lines of code” (CNN Money). With this much complexity, it is no surprise that there is room for error. Not only can hackers now hack into your car’s internal computer and tamper with brakes or steering, malicious apps can be downloaded through your car’s “infotainment” system (dashboard with tablet functionality). Car manufacturers are beginning to notice these problems, and are in the process of building firewalls and security chips for computer protection. All auto-makers are moving toward Internet-connected cars, and manufacturers will not separate the core controls from the car’s wireless communication hub due to federal regulations. Federal regulators will soon demand that cars automatically relay information wirelessly to one another as part of the United States government’s vehicle-to-vehicle communication program. These car-to-car messages will one day be able to engage brakes, which can be life-saving, but also will allow hackers to tamper with steering wheels and navigation. To read the full article from CNN Money, click here.