Congressional Republicans Urge Auto Safety Regulators To Step Up Cybersecurity Efforts
In a recent letter to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, four Republican members of Congress outlined their concerns regarding vehicle hacking, in which a hacker could take control of a vehicle’s steering or brakes. The letter was responding in part to research published in Wired magazine, where the researchers were able to hack into the car’s on-board diagnostics port and cause it to drive erratically. The lawmakers expressed concern over a growing risk to driver safety. Although the NHTSA did not respond immediately to the letter, the agency is expected to release cybersecurity guidelines before the end of the year. Further, the US Justice Department issued a statement on Friday that it has created a “threat analysis team” to study cybersecurity issues relating to self-driving cars and other internet-connected tools.
