Windows 10 and the Internet Of Things
Posted on 07/22/2015 12:07:29 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
One of the big complaints I’ve had with cars and trucks (including ours) since the 90s is the increasing reliance on onboard computers which control nearly every aspect of the vehicle’s performance. I’m sure there must be a number of benefits to it, but it makes home repair of your car (which I used to quite enjoy) impossible in many cases unless you own a computer test station costing as much as the vehicle. Also, your car can break down because of a computer failure when there’s nothing actually wrong with the mechanical performance of the engine or drive train, but the car thinks there’s something wrong because a sensor went on the fritz. This has happened to me.
Now the cars are even “smarter” and the entertainment systems – at a minimum – are hooking into the internet and talking to remote systems located God only knows where. What could possibly go wrong? Well, here’s what could go wrong. Hackers can take over and disable your car while you’re driving it. Wired reporter Andy Greenberg got to experience it first hand as part of an experiment he volunteered for.
I was driving 70 mph on the edge of downtown St. Louis when the exploit began to take hold.
Though I hadn’t touched the dashboard, the vents in the Jeep Cherokee started blasting cold air at the maximum setting, chilling the sweat on my back through the in-seat climate control system. Next the radio switched to the local hip hop station and began blaring Skee-lo at full volume. I spun the control knob left and hit the power button, to no avail. Then the windshield wipers turned on, and wiper fluid blurred the glass.
Granted, those symptoms would no doubt be alarming if you didn’t know that a “friendly” hacker was doing it with your permission, but at least it’s not fatal to have your radio or windshield wipers going crazy on you. But wait… there’s more.
As the two hackers remotely toyed with the air-conditioning, radio, and windshield wipers, I mentally congratulated myself on my courage under pressure. That’s when they cut the transmission.
Immediately my accelerator stopped working. As I frantically pressed the pedal and watched the RPMs climb, the Jeep lost half its speed, then slowed to a crawl. This occurred just as I reached a long overpass, with no shoulder to offer an escape. The experiment had ceased to be fun.
In a way I feel almost guilty helping to publicize this story, but the cat is clearly already out of the bag. If these two guys figured out how to do it, there’s thousands of others who will be able to copy or improve on the method. Even if there weren’t hackers doing this on a broad scale before, they’re going to be out there in force now trying out the cool new toy. If it’s possible to hack into our cars’ control systems, somebody is going to be doing it and it’s almost a certainty that somebody is going to die.
The possibilities go far beyond mere mischief. Someone with enough money could arrange with a hacker to have their enemy, creditor or spouse “have an accident” on a major freeway and who would be the wiser? Could they break into an armored car or a police vehicle in the same fashion? It sounds like the possibilities are limitless.
So what are auto manufacturers going to do about it? Even if they isolate the one exposure in their software which these particular hackers used, another one will pop up. It always happens. Hackers are simply too numerous and successful and they always manage to stay one step ahead of the establishment. So no… “fixing” the software today won’t fix things for tomorrow. There should be an option offered for owners to isolate their cars from the internet entirely if they wish. And if they don’t then the risk transfers to them.
I’ve been telling you forever that the internet is ruining everything. Now get off my lawn.
On the other hand, they can’t “hack” a Model A hotrod with a carbureted engine, analogue gauges, and zero digital doodads.
I’m always behind some idiot going 8-10 mph below the speed limit. Can the hackers make them speed up?
This is why I specifically opted out of the “MySmartConnectedCar” system on my latest vehicle.
Wait till you’re on a long roadtrip and you’re forced to pull over to install a Windows Update.
And then it you get the BLUE SCREEN of DEATH on dashboard???!!!!
If your car has wireless, or an accessible port, then it can be hacked. I am not certain what level of control could established.
My 2007 PT Cruiser could probably be hacked through the port they use to pull codes and run other checks on; just plug in a wireless device that to which the hacker could connect. Dunno what the could do with it, but they could probably do something to the engine.
But if your car is a “wireless hot spot” like so many new models are, I bet the sky is the limit as to what a hacker can do to it!
I suspect every vehicle has a way of disabling the RF links.
I’m thinking my 67 Camaro and 57 Bel Air might not be such bad ideas after all.
There ya go.
This something our fav Freeper Bender would do LOL!
“On the other hand, they can’t “hack” a Model A hotrod with a carbureted engine, analogue gauges, and zero digital doodads.”
Exactly, see my post above. Nor can they GPS them for taxes/surveillance.
....who are always in the left lane.
I actually had a ‘96 Buick with a similar problem.
Something went bad in a computer module and it caused the car to keep “thinking” that it was being stolen and it would not let the engine start. Was an $800 fix.
Computer-related problems in cars go back further than I thought.
Model A —
Back in the day, an acquaintance driving his Model A put in the clutch and revved the engine as he passed a CHP (with radar).
Got pulled over. Bare copper from distributor to plugs raised a little havoc with the radar.
Or some wireless connection that can access the CAN bus (where you can do darn near anything once you have access).
I experienced all of those same issues with my 98 Ford Explorer but it turned out it was just a lemon. Radio would turn on by itself, same with the wipers, sudden unexplained acceleration, you name it. Engine finally exploded at 15,000 miles.
Ford paid me back every cent.
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