AUTOMOTIVE
Cybersecurity concept protects vehicle fleets against hackers
By Christoph Hammerschmidt In the wake of increasing connectivity, the electronic systems
of cars are increasingly becoming the focus of malicious
hackers. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that cyber
security must be guaranteed not only at the time of delivery, but
throughout the entire life of the vehicle. The Israeli security specialist
Karamba Security now has presented a concept for the
comprehensive protection of entire vehicle fleets. An interesting
aspect here is that it can be applied not only to vehicles, but
generally to many types of networked embedded systems.
For the development phase of devices and components,
a new software called VCode from Karamba Security offers
manufacturers security validation. This ensures that the product
software can be checked for security gaps and logical errors
during the design and development phase and that it complies
with current compliance guidelines. By integrating security
testing into the continuous deployment process, companies
save time and money on penetration testing at the end of the
development cycle and on any costly post-test adjustments, the
vendor claims.
VCode improves the protection of networked products
by allowing developers to take security measures during the
development process. Customers - in this case the developers
of ADAS and other vehicle systems at automotive OEMs and
tier ones - want to be informed about potential security vulnerabilities
in their products and expect them to be addressed according
to risk levels and compliance standards,” said Tal Ben
David, co-founder and VP R&D at Karamba. “In the complex,
multi-tiered supply chain of software development, it is critical
that all stakeholders work together on safety issues. VCode
verification accelerates the entire development process and
ensures improved security for automotive networked systems
and ECUs”.
In addition, Karamba is now launching another product, the
XGuard Monitor, to complement and extend its existing XGuard
Runtime Integrity software. It is an embedded Intrusion Detection
System (IDS) - a software agent that continuously monitors
embedded systems for potential threats. The agent reports suspicious
activities at both device and fleet level to the respective
company’s cloud or backend systems, thus creating the greatest
possible transparency. The system benefits from integration
and runtime analysis at the binary code level. XGuard Monitor
is thus able to detect data manipulation and so-called “low and
slow” attacks. This is a hacker method in which external data
packets can be introduced into systems because the security
system considers them to be legitimate traffic due to their low
data rate and size.
Because the software is active throughout the entire life
cycle and remains connected to the backend, the system can
guarantee embedded security throughout the entire life cycle
of devices. The solutions presented can be integrated into the
development process without significantly affecting hardware
resources such as CPU, flash or memory, Karamba promises.
Currently, eleven real-time operating systems (RTOS) and six
types of CPU architectures are supported.
Automotive innovation: The winner is... Mercedes
By Christoph Hammerschmidt In a long-term comparison, Mercedes-Benz remains the most
innovative car brand - at least according to a study by the
Center of Automotive Management (CAM). The multi-year
study also names two surprising winners.
For more than four years, the Center for
Automotive Management, an independent
market research and consulting institute,
conducted a study of the global automotive
technology market. Compared to the
company’s last long-term study (2013 to
2015), the Daimler brand Mercedes Benz
was able to maintain its top position,
Audi and Lexus have gained in innovative
strength. With Nio and Wey, two Chinese
premium vehicle manufacturers are represented
in the top 15 for the first time. The
losers include Cadillac (General Motors)
and the Honda brand Acura. BMW and
Tesla also lost one place each.
The study analysed the vehicle technology
innovations of 31 premium brands.
From Mercedes to
McLaren: The most
innovative carmakers
© Center of Automotive
Management.
The innovations were evaluated according
to quantitative and qualitative criteria. Due
to the diesel scandal, the technology field
“conventional drives” was not included in the evaluation.
With almost 180 innovations in series production, Mercedes-
Benz is the most innovative premium brand, followed by Audi
and BMW. The difference in innovative strength between the
top performer Mercedes (390 index points) and the second Audi
(252 index points) is particularly large. One reason for this is the
many highly valued world firsts that Mercedes can boast.
These include, for example, the accident reporting system
Parking in the E-Class, the MBUX smart human interface in
the A-Class, the Energizing Coach in the GLE, and aerodynamic
body innovations in the CLA. A total of 77 absolute
innovations or world firsts relating to specific segments
were included in the balance sheet.
Audi and BMW were at significantly lower levels of 42
and 36, respectively. Tesla (23 world firsts) is also significantly
lower, but there are some particularly highly rated
electric drive innovations, e.g. the highest purely electric
range in a luxury sedan (Model S) and an SUV (Model X).
While there are few changes in the midfield (Volvo, JLR
and Porsche hold their places), the Toyota brand Lexus has
gained ground. The first Digital Side View Monitor in the ES
or the learning navigation system “Predictive Efficient Drive” in
the UX, for example, led to this.
It is noticeable that two new brands are represented in the
top 15: Nio (Next EV) and Wey (GreatWall) are the first purely
Chinese brands (apart from Volvo under Geley leadership) to
come closer to Western premium brands in terms of innovation.
Although only founded in 2017, Nio has even launched two
world firsts: the battery change concept (after the failed Better
Place project) and the digital assistant Nomi.
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