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Written by Paul Weissler
Automotive cyber security is moving to the front of the line of industry concerns, and panelistsat the recent 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show"s Connected Car Expo outlined approaches that the industry should take. A pair of loud wake-up calls were cited byAndre Weimerskirch, a research scientist at the University of Michigan"sTransportation Research Institute. The mostnoteworthy auto cyber hack was a project by Chris Valasek and Charlie Miller, now researchers at Uber Advanced Technology Center, in which they remotely could apply or disable the brakes, even kill the engine and affect steering. Their work, applied to a 2014 Jeep Cherokee,through the UConnect infotainment system with Sprint cellular, led to a FiatChrysler Automobiles safety recall on a wide range of models. The control was exercised without physicalaccess to the vehicle itself. Stillanother security researcher, Corey Thuen of Digital Bond Labs, claimed he hadreverse-engineered the Progressive Insurance dongle, and performed limited functionsthat indicated it was vulnerable. Thedongle, supplied by Xirgo Technologies, monitors driving patterns, reports viacellular, and the information is used to adjust policy rates. "Hack into everything" Those were justexamples, Weimerskirch said, adding, "we can hack into pretty mucheverything that"s out there." Afearsome issue he cited: an attackerjust needs a tiny bit of automotive background because, assuming familiaritywith enterprise IT, he/she can hit the car. Cadillac"sannouncement that it will introduce V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) communication on the 2017 CTS gives a sense ofurgency within the industry, as the rest of the industry is preparing to do thesame. But, he pointed out, the carraises concerns beyond electronic communication via smartphones and computers. Weimserskirch noted three primary issues:"safety, a super complex supply chainwith hundreds of suppliers, and a complex product the car with thousands ofcomponents." The auto industry,of course, is looking at what other industries are doing, Weimerskirch said, but there isno other application in which the auto industry could just adapt its cyber securitysolutions. Enterprise IT, which dealswith the hardware and control software systems used by large operations, must be cyber-secure, but it doesn"t involve the same level ofsafety or mobile use. SCADA (SupervisoryControl and Data Acquisition) deals with industrial controls, so safety isinvolved, but not mobile use. Smartphones, he said, particularly the iPhone, has developed relevantsolutions, but not in the area of safety. "However, [the] iPhone does a lotof stuff right," he added. Some 15 yearsago, Weimerskirch continued, researchers saw the value of more resilient electronic architectures with formallyverified source code and interfaces, and today we"re still not usingthem."So let"s start," he urged. Fusing to raise confidence level The move toautonomous driving, he said, will bring in use of various types of radar sensors, cameras, and wireless. Each can be hacked, with wireless the easiest and cameras the hardest. Although cameras can be blinded, theirimages can"t be forged. Lidar and radarsensors are somewhere in between, he told the forum. So the approach,Weimerskirch continued, must be to takethe security levels of wireless, sensors, and cameras, and fuse them into a systemthat raises the total confidence level to an acceptable perch. That is likely to mean thatsome features will have to be limited until the security level can be made highenough. Cybersecurity curriculum This work willrequire trained talent, observed Karl Heimer of AutoImmune, acyber security consultant to the State of Michigan. There are no cybersecurity engineering degreegraduates, because there is no degree program in the subject. A curriculum is needed, he said, including agood background in hardware/electrical engineering, education in computerscience, and how automobiles work. The degreeprogram, he added, also should include internships at either an OE manufacturer or supplier anda hacking company. "You don"t getto understand how break-ins occur bybeing with a maker or developer,"he said. So the interns have to live with the people who actually do thehacking. The objective is for the OE toend up with cyber security people who can work in development orassessment/quality assurance. He noted thateach OE maker and supplier has different needs and therefore likely differentapproaches, but the Michigan Economic Development Corp., working in curriculum development, is trying to establish a common base thatcolleges can adopt. New initiatives, legislation Cyber securityeducation opportunities are proliferating, the panelists agreed, pointing tothe annual SAE Battelle Cyberauto Challenge, a five-day workshop to identifytrends in the field (the next is July 25-29, 2016) David Strickland,an attorney who once headed NHTSA, notedthat legislators already are in the fray, with the SPY Car Act of 2015requiring vehicles to be "reasonably" equipped to protect againsthacking, including intrusion detection systems. Naturally, Congress doesn"t know how to do this, so it assigns the jobto NHTSA and the Federal TradeCommission. He also pointedto Auto ISAC (Auto Information Sharing and Analysis Center), a consortium whichhas just gone live. Strickland describedit as a foundational step to share information about cyber threats amongindustry members, who include carmakers and suppliers. Forum attendeesexpressed concern about the possible effect of OE cyber security measures on the access of independent mechanics andtheir test equipment to the vehicle"s CAN (Controller Area Network) buses,which also are entry points, via infotainment systems" wireless, for hackers. Security effect on features Weimerskirch saidsecurity, therefore, must be by design, not by obscurity (denying access to theinformation); "we know how to do that." The other panelistsagreed. Heimer added that it should notbe necessary to hide the contents of a packet needed for diagnosis, and securedesign would prevent it from being changed or the command it contains not goingthrough. Cyber security is likely to affect the maximum performanceof some features, the panelists agreed. Weimerskirch said, for example, that the distance maintained between aroadway line of cars might have to be increased because if the wireless were hacked, thesystem would have to fall back on readings from radar and camera with on-boardadjustments. Heimer added that carowners might have to be limited in what they can download; "you can"tburden an OE" with the threats of any download choice the driver makes. To improve vehicleprotection against cyber threats, "over-the-air" software updates areessential, the speakers conceded,pointing to Tesla"s success in that area as a superior approach to sending outflash drives for owners to use. Othermakes have indicated their future intentions to do the same.
Date: 04-Jan-2016 04:56 EST
More of this article on the SAE International website
ID: 1553
Automotive cyber security is moving to the front of the line of industry concerns, and panelistsat the recent 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show"s Connected Car Expo outlined approaches that the industry should take. A pair of loud wake-up calls were cited byAndre Weimerskirch, a research scientist at the University of Michigan"sTransportation Research Institute. The mostnoteworthy auto cyber hack was a project by Chris Valasek and Charlie Miller, now researchers at Uber Advanced Technology Center, in which they remotely could apply or disable the brakes, even kill the engine and affect steering. Their work, applied to a 2014 Jeep Cherokee,through the UConnect infotainment system with Sprint cellular, led to a FiatChrysler Automobiles safety recall on a wide range of models. The control was exercised without physicalaccess to the vehicle itself. Stillanother security researcher, Corey Thuen of Digital Bond Labs, claimed he hadreverse-engineered the Progressive Insurance dongle, and performed limited functionsthat indicated it was vulnerable. Thedongle, supplied by Xirgo Technologies, monitors driving patterns, reports viacellular, and the information is used to adjust policy rates. "Hack into everything" Those were justexamples, Weimerskirch said, adding, "we can hack into pretty mucheverything that"s out there." Afearsome issue he cited: an attackerjust needs a tiny bit of automotive background because, assuming familiaritywith enterprise IT, he/she can hit the car. Cadillac"sannouncement that it will introduce V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) communication on the 2017 CTS gives a sense ofurgency within the industry, as the rest of the industry is preparing to do thesame. But, he pointed out, the carraises concerns beyond electronic communication via smartphones and computers. Weimserskirch noted three primary issues:"safety, a super complex supply chainwith hundreds of suppliers, and a complex product the car with thousands ofcomponents." The auto industry,of course, is looking at what other industries are doing, Weimerskirch said, but there isno other application in which the auto industry could just adapt its cyber securitysolutions. Enterprise IT, which dealswith the hardware and control software systems used by large operations, must be cyber-secure, but it doesn"t involve the same level ofsafety or mobile use. SCADA (SupervisoryControl and Data Acquisition) deals with industrial controls, so safety isinvolved, but not mobile use. Smartphones, he said, particularly the iPhone, has developed relevantsolutions, but not in the area of safety. "However, [the] iPhone does a lotof stuff right," he added. Some 15 yearsago, Weimerskirch continued, researchers saw the value of more resilient electronic architectures with formallyverified source code and interfaces, and today we"re still not usingthem."So let"s start," he urged. Fusing to raise confidence level The move toautonomous driving, he said, will bring in use of various types of radar sensors, cameras, and wireless. Each can be hacked, with wireless the easiest and cameras the hardest. Although cameras can be blinded, theirimages can"t be forged. Lidar and radarsensors are somewhere in between, he told the forum. So the approach,Weimerskirch continued, must be to takethe security levels of wireless, sensors, and cameras, and fuse them into a systemthat raises the total confidence level to an acceptable perch. That is likely to mean thatsome features will have to be limited until the security level can be made highenough. Cybersecurity curriculum This work willrequire trained talent, observed Karl Heimer of AutoImmune, acyber security consultant to the State of Michigan. There are no cybersecurity engineering degreegraduates, because there is no degree program in the subject. A curriculum is needed, he said, including agood background in hardware/electrical engineering, education in computerscience, and how automobiles work. The degreeprogram, he added, also should include internships at either an OE manufacturer or supplier anda hacking company. "You don"t getto understand how break-ins occur bybeing with a maker or developer,"he said. So the interns have to live with the people who actually do thehacking. The objective is for the OE toend up with cyber security people who can work in development orassessment/quality assurance. He noted thateach OE maker and supplier has different needs and therefore likely differentapproaches, but the Michigan Economic Development Corp., working in curriculum development, is trying to establish a common base thatcolleges can adopt. New initiatives, legislation Cyber securityeducation opportunities are proliferating, the panelists agreed, pointing tothe annual SAE Battelle Cyberauto Challenge, a five-day workshop to identifytrends in the field (the next is July 25-29, 2016) David Strickland,an attorney who once headed NHTSA, notedthat legislators already are in the fray, with the SPY Car Act of 2015requiring vehicles to be "reasonably" equipped to protect againsthacking, including intrusion detection systems. Naturally, Congress doesn"t know how to do this, so it assigns the jobto NHTSA and the Federal TradeCommission. He also pointedto Auto ISAC (Auto Information Sharing and Analysis Center), a consortium whichhas just gone live. Strickland describedit as a foundational step to share information about cyber threats amongindustry members, who include carmakers and suppliers. Forum attendeesexpressed concern about the possible effect of OE cyber security measures on the access of independent mechanics andtheir test equipment to the vehicle"s CAN (Controller Area Network) buses,which also are entry points, via infotainment systems" wireless, for hackers. Security effect on features Weimerskirch saidsecurity, therefore, must be by design, not by obscurity (denying access to theinformation); "we know how to do that." The other panelistsagreed. Heimer added that it should notbe necessary to hide the contents of a packet needed for diagnosis, and securedesign would prevent it from being changed or the command it contains not goingthrough. Cyber security is likely to affect the maximum performanceof some features, the panelists agreed. Weimerskirch said, for example, that the distance maintained between aroadway line of cars might have to be increased because if the wireless were hacked, thesystem would have to fall back on readings from radar and camera with on-boardadjustments. Heimer added that carowners might have to be limited in what they can download; "you can"tburden an OE" with the threats of any download choice the driver makes. To improve vehicleprotection against cyber threats, "over-the-air" software updates areessential, the speakers conceded,pointing to Tesla"s success in that area as a superior approach to sending outflash drives for owners to use. Othermakes have indicated their future intentions to do the same.
Date: 04-Jan-2016 04:56 EST
More of this article on the SAE International website
ID: 1553
