With all the technology going forward, having cars that we imagined the future will have is getting really close. We are not to the flying cars part yet, but it seems like dully autonomous cars are becoming part of the daily life.
It definitely sounds cool to have a car that will take all the responsibility and drive you from one place to another, without you worrying if you had something to drink and if it is safe to drive. However, with all the cyber security breaches and things going downwards when it comes to cyber safety, we beg the question, are autonomic cars really safe?
What are autonomic cars?
Self-driving cars, or autonomic vehicles (AV) are cars that are capable moving safely and sensing the environment with little or no human input. These vehicles combine a variety of sensors to sense the environment such as GPS, radars, sonars, inertial measurement units and more.
What are the pros and cons of AVs?
Like everything else in the current technology, self-driving cars have their pros and cons. Some of the pros include
- They will serve multiple purposes – more space for the passengers and time for relaxation while they travel from one place to another
- Follow the rules – there will be no speeding or breaking traffic rules
- Better safety – in theory, AVs will make the journey safer and longer-overnight traveling can be done faster and easier
- Environmental benefits – less or no fuel consumption means that there will be fewer pollution levels
Some of the cons when it comes to the next generation autonomic cars include:
- Loss of jobs – people will be replaced by robots and that means some of them will get fired
- Commuting issues – since these cars will follow all the rules, it may mean slower commuting and more traffic
- Too much risk – even a minor issue in the tech can mean a major issue when it comes to traveling
- Safety issues – since AVs rely on software, it means there can be hacking and cyber security breaches
How will autonomous vehicle companies protect themselves against hacking?
Like everything else that’s software related, self-driving cars can be victims of cyber security breaches. This means that hackers can gain control over the cars and use them for whatever they want. This would lead to decreased safety.
Some of the ways that hackers can use to put the industrial cyber security at risk are gaining control of the AVs making them cause accidents, stop traffic or even use them to endanger the lives of the people riding in the cars or even pedestrians. Because of this, the autonomous vehicle companies really need to focus on the cyber security breaches and how to prevent and avoid them.
Since the first fatal accident that involved an Uber AV in Arizona that resulted in a death of a pedestrian, there are a lot of safety concerns about this type of vehicles.
Cyber security has been a big problem, especially in the United States and almost every company as well as the government of the US are trying to make prevent breaches and to make everything safer for the public. Unfortunately, not all cyber attacks can be prevented. If self-driving cars are the future, then every company must have at least one cybersecurity expert to take care of the software and make sure that the vehicle is safe enough to be in traffic.
What will happen in case of cyber security breaches involving autonomous vehicles?
In case of breaching the security and taking over the AVs, there might be some huge problems occurring. This includes car accidents and it may result in the death of people. In case there are security breaches, companies have to have a failsafe and a way to exclude the cars from the traffic. This is one of the reasons, mass production and the use of self-driving cars only may be the wrong way to go.
At the moment, there are several companies that produce self-driving cars and one of the places they are used is Phoenix, Arizona. Lyft self-driving cars at the moment include Ford Fusion and Chrysler Pacifica. The plans for the future may include the mass production of AVs. However, they may be a lot less safe than people originally thought they will be.
Until the cybersecurity issues are taken care of, autonomous vehicles may not be as a good idea as we all thought the future will bring.
