Vehicles are fast becoming the world's most sophisticated mobile devices. Unfortunately, cybercriminals are just as sophisticated.
Designing robust cybersecurity architecture is critical to protect connected cars from cyberattacks, but is it enough?
Even the most powerful security won't stop malicious actors from exploring vulnerability.
Hackers will always keep hacking.
This is exactly why Thales owns and operates global state-of-the-art security operations centres (SOCs) on several continents and covers a variety of countries.
What's a SOC?
Consider a SOC as a command central for identifying emerging cybersecurity threats and responding immediately to mitigate the attack risk.
SOCs are essential components of security architecture and part of every IoT device lifecycle management.
Why are vehicle SOCs important for the automotive ecosystem?
Consider this - cars today have up to 150 connected Electronic Control Units (ECUs) and up to 100 million lines of code.
They include valuable user data that needs to be protected. They also generate and process massive amounts of data and exchange it with cloud platforms, road signs, smart homes, and other vehicles.
This acts like "instructions" for vehicles, impacting the functionality of steering, door locks, windscreen wipers, traffic lights, and much more.
For the carmaker and owner, it's a landmine of vulnerabilities and risk.
- What happens if data is exposed or stolen?
- What about malware infections that lead to costly repairs, vehicle hacking, theft, or worse?
That's where Thales SOCs can help.
How do Thales SOCs securely protect automotive applications?
Thales SOCs help carmakers monitor and control the global threat landscape and prevent vehicles from emerging cyber threats.
At each SOC facility, Thales cybersecurity experts, threat hunters, and incident responders work closely with automotive engineers to monitor, analyze, and immediately alert and react to potential threats or suspicious events.
Thales' advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) technologies, combined with a robust set of dedicated processes, allow monitoring data from every part of the connected car ecosystem.
There's more.
SOC experts are looking for unusual behaviours.
They analyze communication protocols, IP traffic, communications with cloud platforms, endpoint devices, applications, and many other elements, which provide Indicators of Compromise (IOC) to identify potentially malicious activity.
What are the benefits of a SOC for the automotive world?
They're plentiful!
A dedicated automotive SOC provides centralized visibility of your fleet's ECUs, sensors, and vehicles.
Uninterrupted monitoring and analysis improve response times when security issues occur.
A shorter response time means less collateral damage and minimized costs associated with cybersecurity incidents.
Detailed reporting processes and improved industry collaboration help automotive players meet emerging cybersecurity regulations, as UNECE WP29 regulations require standardized processes to meet the following goals:
- Identify and manage cybersecurity risks in vehicle design
- Verify that risks are managed
- Make sure risk assessments are kept current
- Monitor attacks and respond to them
- Analyse successful or attempted attacks
- Review cybersecurity measures in the light of new threats
- Ensure security lifecycle management – from development to production and through to post-production
Thales SOCs strengthen trust in connected cars and the data they communicate while watching and learning to detect all new potential malware or threats in the long run.
They are an essential element in Thales's end-to-end cybersecurity architecture, supporting carmakers to unleash the secure connected car of the future.