NHTSA Investigating Harman Kardon for Hacking Vulnerabilities
Fresh from the recent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles infotainment-hacking flap, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced last week that it would look further into supplier Harman Kardon for possible vulnerabilities in other cars, the Associated Press reports (via Autoblog).
Harman Kardon produces radios for automakers such as BMW, Subaru, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo, in addition to FCA.
Last month, FCA recalled 1.4 million cars after a vulnerability in its system was detailed by Wired, which allowed hackers to control critical functions in a Jeep Cherokee, including throttle, brakes and steering.
The automaker said the recall would fix a loophole in the 8.4-inch Uconnect systems that permitted the intrusion by hackers.
Last week, Wired detailed another hack that could reportedly open doors on an OnStar-equipped car made by General Motors and start its engine. GM said it patched that vulnerability without recalling its cars.
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Why are car audio systems integrated so much that it could interfere with critical components to begin with? Is it integrated into the rest of the car's computer ecosystem because of antitheft standards?
The bigger focus should be on automakers actually using these systems in vehicles, they're a danger to everyone else on the road, by way of both distractions, and faulting. All vehicle systems should be fully accessible by the owner and fully prepared for all future circumstances from the factory, needing to update any computers or vehicle systems should be seen as a complete failure to deliver the vehicles ready for the consumer. It should be seen as no less egregious to require a system update after being sold than it would be to be sold without brake pads.