You Should Be Scared Of Your Car

"MojoMotors.com" (MojoMotors) 10/30/2014 at 13:50 • Filed to: Halloween, Car Hacks, Technology

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[Reposted from 10/27] Driving a car is an !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! that most people do everyday. It doesn't phase us that we share the roads with drowsy, distracted and drunk drivers, each wielding their very own 2-ton death-machines, loaded with !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! Unfortunately, there are other threats on the horizon. As more automotive systems become controlled by computers, your car is increasingly more vulnerable to hacker attacks.

The infographic shows the systems that can be hacked on any new car and many used cars on the market. The more robust and interconnected the computer system is, the more that can be done to your car. Of course, not every hacker is a psychopath with homicidal intentions. It is unlikely, but not impossible, that a hacker would go through the extreme effort to harm the average Toyota Prius owner. A hack-attack could even be harmless, albeit very annoying. Below we break down every hack by degree of severity.

Troll Hacks

Like those preteens who play ding-dong ditch in your neighborhood, some hackers are just out to mess with people. Nonetheless, these hacks can be unsettling. Imagine rockin' out to your favorite Kelly Clarkson song when suddenly the radio changes to a different station, turns to static or shuts off all together. Better yet, your horn starts blaring and the only way to stop it is to disconnect the battery.

Trolling hackers can even change the gauge readings on certain cars, particularly those with digital readouts. This picture of a 2010 Prius dashboard was taken by government-funded car hacking researchers. Newsflash: the Prius does not go 199mph.

Imagine looking down at your speedometer while driving on the highway to see 199mph, or perhaps 10mph. How about seeing a gas gauge that reads empty when you just filled up the day before? Troll hacks may be relatively harmless, but they can make you feel as uneasy as that random dude from high school who messages you every time you log onto Facebook.

Theft Hacks

These hacks are far more serious than troll hacks. The features that integrate cars with smart phones are convenient, but this convenience comes at a cost. Hackers can infiltrate the operating system in your car, gaining access to information that would allow them to send text messages from your devices and listen to your conversations inside the car. Considering how much we do with our smartphones, the information they hold is extremely valuable.

Many new cars come with applications that can control the door locks, open the trunk and start the engine. Hackers can manipulate this technology to get inside your vehicle and steal your valuables.

Don't get lulled into a false sense of security because your car doesn't integrate with smart phones and apps. Remote key fobs use radio frequencies that can be hacked giving burglars access to your car. Garage door buttons often located on your visor or rear view mirror, are also a target. It seems the only way to be truly safe these days is to !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Deadly Hacks

Unfortunately there are some bad eggs out there who can only be beaten by the likes of Jack Bauer. These hackers aren't trying to steal the valuables in your glove compartment or change your radio stations. They're trying to harm whoever is in the car. Most of these hacks involve controlling the actual driving systems in the vehicle, such as engaging or disengaging the brakes, manipulating the throttle or controlling the steering. Drive-by-wire systems, which replace mechanical functions such as the brakes and throttle with electronics, are a necessary component of remote hacking. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , more systems will be drive-by-wire, which basically means every car can be hacked.

Sadly, it doesn't stop there. Hackers can shut off a car's headlights, which can easily cause a driver to veer off the road and crash, especially if the driver hasn't been eating enough carrots. Furthermore, many cars today have GPS which makes them trackable. While that may not be a threat while driving, you never know what will happen once you arrive at your destination.

Did we scare you?

As of yet, there is no known case of a deranged hacker attempting this type of thing in real life. In fact, the only instances of car hacking involve thieves using electronic devices to unlock car doors. Getting your stuff stolen is never fun, but its not nearly as bad as someone shutting your headlights off at 85mph. Just because a hacker can do this, doesn't mean it's easy. Hacking a car requires a great deal of effort, and as long as its easier to steal personal information through other methods, its safe to plug your iPhone into your car.

However, experts agree that it's only a matter of time before a someone with extensive computing knowledge and a vendetta attempts one of these hacks in real life. No matter how robust the security systems in a car, a determined hacker with a motive will always find a way. Beware of surly-looking nerds toting electronic devices or aiming anything with an antennae at your vehicle.

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Original story here

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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > MojoMotors.com 10/27/2014 at 10:03

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I'll only be seriously worried if they find a way to replace the speedo with Goatse.

< Hank Hill voice> That'll cause some real crashes, I tell you what.

Samuel Jackson > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 10/27/2014 at 10:06

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Opposite Locksmith > MojoMotors.com 10/27/2014 at 10:11

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LOL aftermarket ecu components, custom tune, and weekly data-logging. All I'm hearing is never get rid of my WRX

MacTech > MojoMotors.com 10/27/2014 at 12:44

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Good luck trying to gain control of my car, it has one major safety feature that is unhackable, period...

A *MANUAL* transmission with a real foot-operated clutch pedal, even if the ECU was compromised somehow, and the hacker tried to cause uncontrolled acceleration, i simply push the clutch pedal down, *mechanically disengaging* the engine from the transmission, no more uncontrolled acceleration.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 13:52

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I just wish my speedometer would say anything at all.

Coty > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 13:52

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Oh no!

MojoMotors.com > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 10/30/2014 at 13:53

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Ouch! You can't even get a "0 mph" out of it?

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 13:54

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Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 13:57

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Until cars have a permenant wireless OBD connection they can get into I don't see much of a risk. Drive by wire doesn't really make it much more hackable at all. Hell a mechanic throttle cable can be fucked with to make it jam at WOT or something. Not a great article.

MojoMotors.com > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 10/30/2014 at 13:59

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Wow you must have nerves of steel, or at least aluminum if you drive an F150.

KirkyV > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 13:59

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I'm reasonably certain that my car is susceptible to absolutely none of the above. Am I scared of it? Of course! It's a car! Driving it is by far the riskiest thing I do on a regular basis, and my particular car has all the crash protection of a paper bag.

Hacking, though? Nah.

MojoMotors.com > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 10/30/2014 at 14:01

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Hey man, we're just trying to get with the spirit of the season.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:02

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Mine is an aluminum vehicle, so that might be it.

MojoMotors.com > Opposite Locksmith 10/30/2014 at 14:02

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I can think of a few other reasons not to get rid of it...

MojoMotors.com > MacTech 10/30/2014 at 14:02

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What the heck is a manual transmission?

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:04

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Good luck hacking my 20 years old Fiat...

BTW, I get that it's a joke :p

MojoMotors.com > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 10/30/2014 at 14:04

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Yeah, you're probably in the clear with that one.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:05

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Fair enough. I'm one of those get off my lawn types so halloween isn't my favourite holiday haha.

MojoMotors.com > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 10/30/2014 at 14:06

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Well on the plus side, there will probably be a lot of kids around and you can get the pleasure of yelling, "get off my lawn!" at them.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:10

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Probably. Aside from the EFI, everything else is mechanical, throttle linkages, transmission linkages, clutch actuators...

MojoMotors.com > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 10/30/2014 at 14:13

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You'd DEFINITELY be safe if you were driving an 1899 Fiat 4HP

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:22

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Nope. The end of the cable stripped, so I had to disconnect it. Otherwise when I got going what I believed to be 40mph, it would buzz super loud and show 140mph. It would also clock miles really quickly On the odometer.

MojoMotors.com > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 10/30/2014 at 14:29

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Well I hope you are good at estimating your speed without it!

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:31

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This is true. Maybe I'll buy a cane to wave at them.

MojoMotors.com > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 10/30/2014 at 14:37

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Canes are effective. Especially when you shake them while rocking violently in your rocking chair. There's something about the combo that just works.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 14:51

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Well that's my night planned out.

Yogurt > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 16:50

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What is scary is the cars that have the computer firmware updated over the interwebs (Tesla Model S for example) are open for some hacker to do whatever he/she wants with some malicious code in there without having physical access to the car itself. Seeing what has already happened to many of our mainstream interweb connected devices (phones, PC's, etc...) it makes sense that those same type of hackers will get to cars eventually as there are ways to profit from it. "Want into your car? send XXX dollars to me while I sit on this beach in Fiji"

We could wake up one day to find that some hacker bricked all the ECU's on the planet for a specific model, range of models, or an entire brand making the cars undriveable. I would consider that relatively "good" in comparison to what else you could do with full control.

Time will tell.

MojoMotors.com > Yogurt 10/30/2014 at 16:54

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That's a good point. Do you see any potential dangers with in-car wifi hotspots like the system that Chevy has now?

Tohru > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 17:04

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This is scary that hackers can lock the throttle wide-open. Normally it's just Toyota engineering that locks the throttle wide-open, which is okay because the engineers responsible are trained professionals.

Opposite Locksmith > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 17:04

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hahaha id love the hear em. I've got a good right up here somewhere on my baby WRXWRX

Yogurt > MojoMotors.com 10/30/2014 at 17:42

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All depends if it's tied directly in with the other modules to allow the manufacturer to do "over the air" software/firmware updates to the computer modules in the car.

I am not familiar with that specific Chevy system, but if it's only a wifi hotspot so you can get internet on your laptop, or maybe the vehicle's radio is the only thing connected so you can stream interweb music, that's not really as dangerous as a hacker may just infect your PC with virus or force you to listen to Kenny G all the time. (well, maybe that IS just as dangerous)

It all depends on what the connection is tied into and how it is tied in.

If the connection allows changes to the software/firmware on the vehicle, that's the worse case as a hacker could get access to control just about anything that is tied in with reprogrammed software/firmware being sent to the car. Unfortunately, many manufacturers are now starting to do this, so there's a door for hackers to get in through. Even if you triple deadbolt and double padlock that door, hackers still have a way of figuring out a way in, and sometimes it's surprising quick and easy to do. (think of the speed at which iphone jailbreaks have come out)

Slightly down from that, if the connection allows information about the vehicle (speed, location, etc...) or voice data through an in-cabin microphone to be transmitted, you could get hackers that can benefit from that information. This is similar to when a phone or PC gets hacked, not much they can actively do physically harm you or other property, but have a bunch of information they can use against you. "Want your wife to not know about how you were at your girlfriends house last night when you said you were at the bowling alley with your manfriends? send XXX dollars to me while I sit on this beach in Fiji"

Like any new technology, you really won't see the full pro's and con's until it's been "in the wild" for a while. While I think that being able to update software/firmware automagically to fix issues or add features without having to take your ride to the dealership is a great idea, it does open one up to possibilities of negative impacts if you decide to go that route.

1UZ > MojoMotors.com 11/10/2014 at 14:51

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This sounds like an average experience with a bmw rental car.

timgray > MojoMotors.com 11/25/2014 at 06:38

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1985 Land Cruiser. 100% hacker immune.