COMMENT: Could cyber threats kill the autonomous car?

Connectivity is revolutionising new vehicles, which in future will generate as much as 4,000 gigabytes of data each day. However, whenever a device is connected to the internet, the risk of a cyber attack arises. Throw in the expectation that many vehicles will eventually be capable of driving fully autonomously, the potential ramifications of a fleet-wide cyber attack are grave.

At M:bility | Europe, a two-day conference held in Stuttgart to investigate the future of mobility, experts discussed the challenge facing the automotive industry in this regard. In fact, the question arose as to whether the threat of criminals taking remote control of real vehicles could prevent autonomous vehicles (AVs) from hitting public roads altogether.

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