Hackers and their bad behavior seem to be dominating the headlines recently: a $30 device that lets you unlock almost any keyless entry car and the announcement of the OwnStar, a little black box that hacks GM's OnStar system, have people nervous. Most alarmingly, due to a Wired article about a Jeep being remotely hacked while driving on the highway, Chrysler immediately recalled 1.4 million cars in an attempt to resolve the issue.
Now the world's major car manufacturers are working to prevent the next big hack. Automotive News reports that automakers are working to create an Information Sharing and Analysis Center with the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Association of Global Automakers. By year's end, the hope is that this will provide a network through which automakers can collaborate and expand upon the best safeguards against cyber threats, with all major automakers in participation. Also expected to join in the future are suppliers and telecommunications companies.
Denise Anderson, who is the chair of the National Council of ISACs, doesn't think things are dire right now. However, she cautions Automotive News, "You don't want to be caught unprepared. Health care is being heavily targeted right now, but in the past they weren't."
Exactly what this alliance will result in remains unclear. Yet, in the face of startling car hacking discoveries, it is a necessary first step.
