Smart cars have also become a target of hackers. But you can defend yourself by implementing some simple strategies
Hackers stop at nothing and are always looking for new devices to infect. After computers, smartphones and smart TVs, the latest frontier is connected cars. Modern smart cars house infotainment systems that can end up in the hands of hackers.
It's not that simple, but it's a possibility. Car companies are continually working to improve the security systems that protect smart cars, but hackers always manage to stay one step ahead. The goal of hackers is to collect the data the user exchanges with the infotainment system: phone numbers, text messages and cities visited. In some cases, hackers even manage to gain control of the connected car and can control it remotely, but they have to be close to the vehicle. Here's how a hacker can infect a smart car.
Use GPS
The first way to hack a connected car is to use the vehicle's GPS. In order to successfully infect a car, it is necessary to find one that has flaws in it. And this is only possible by using GPS: using Wi-Fi hot-spots and a computer, you can locate a smart car and track it using the global positioning system.
Hacking the infotainment system
The main goal of hackers is to remotely control the infotainment system inside the car. The reason is quite simple: by getting hold of the infotainment system you can disturb the driver. How to realize that the car has been hacked? If we try to lower or raise the volume of the radio and we can't, or if we turn it off but it turns on again automatically, then it means that some hacker has managed to take control of it. It's not dangerous, but it can be very annoying. The same can happen with air conditioning systems: you try to lower the temperature, but the system doesn't respond and does the opposite action.
Taking control of the car
The most dangerous way to hack a smart car is when the hacker manages to take complete control of the vehicle. It happens very rarely, but it is a possibility. In such cases, the hacker has complete control over the vehicle and may even decide to turn off the car's engine and make it stop in traffic. In other cases he might start fiddling with the levers on the handlebars and turn on the headlights or hazard warning lights. In such cases, the only thing to do is to pull over to the side of the road and turn off the car, so that it becomes harmless.
What to do to defend against hackers
There are still no antivirus that protect smart cars (they are under development) from hacker attacks. The protection of connected cars is entrusted only to the car companies that continuously release patches that cover flaws and improve the security of the vehicle. In this respect, all companies work quite hard to continuously release software updates that improve infotainment systems.