With rapid advances in technology, modern vehicles are becoming increasingly complex with advanced electronics, hardware, and semiconductors. These advances have pushed the automotive industry into the realm of Level 4 and Level 5 autonomous driving capabilities and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). However, unlike other industries, automotive electronics faces a much harsher environment and more stringent safety requirements due to the nature of its operation.
As vehicles become more sophisticated and connected, ensuring functional safety and vehicle security has become a top priority for automakers. Automotive electronics reliability and security are held to the highest standards, ensuring high quality and safety over the entire operating life of the vehicle.
Environmental issues of automotive systems
Automotive semiconductors and electronics must operate under extreme conditions such as temperature fluctuations, exposure to moisture, limited power stability, electromagnetic radiation, and exposure to physical vibrations. The reliability and robustness of these components is critical to ensuring the proper functioning of the vehicle.
To address these challenges, designers must develop automotive silicones that can withstand harsh environmental conditions and maintain high performance. Fail-safe and fail-operation conditions are implemented to ensure that the silicon operates as intended even in the presence of failures.
Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) requirements
To address the stringent safety requirements of automotive electronics, all chips, systems, and hardware designed for a vehicle must meet the automotive safety integrity level ( ASIL) requirements must be met. ASIL is determined through a thorough use case and hazard analysis for each specific vehicle make and model. This evaluation ensures that vehicle electronics operate reliably and safely in a variety of scenarios and conditions.
Meeting ASIL standards is essential to establishing consumer confidence in the safety and reliability of automotive electronics. OEMs and suppliers must comply with ASIL requirements to assure customers that their vehicles are designed with safety in mind.
Cybersecurity challenges in connected cars
As vehicles become more connected and digital, they become increasingly vulnerable to cyber threats and attacks. The integration of features such as remote updates and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication has expanded the attack surface for malicious actors. Unlike other industries, automotive cybersecurity is unique because security vulnerabilities can directly impact vehicle safety.
automotive security threat vector
Connected cars face a variety of threat vectors that can be exploited by cyber attackers. These include external networks such as cellular networks for telematics and his Wi-Fi for entertainment, vehicle internal networks, vehicle internal ports, and external devices such as wireless key fobs.
Attackers can exploit vulnerabilities in telematics networks to hijack vehicle connectivity and remotely control critical functions such as steering and brakes. The lack of confidentiality in vehicle networks allows attackers to reverse engineer messages and impersonate internal devices, creating a potential security breach.
Cryptography and Hardware Security Modules (HSM)
To address these cybersecurity challenges, automotive engineers are turning to encryption. Hardware security modules (HSMs) are utilized to perform cryptographic functions that enhance the security of vehicle communications and data protection.
The built-in hardware security model is designed to protect against a variety of threat vectors, including network intrusions, unauthorized software updates, and impersonation attacks. Secure communication protocols are also implemented to ensure that data exchanged between various vehicle components is secure and authentic.
Industry initiatives for vehicle security
Various industry initiatives aim to establish a standardized security framework for automotive electronics. For example, the EVITA project is a European research effort focused on establishing secure onboard networks through hardware security anchors and software security layers. By contributing to projects like this, automakers collaborate to develop best practices and guidelines for vehicle security.
ISO/SAE J3101 and AUTOSAR are other industry standards that address broader security guidelines and govern security requirements for interconnected electronic control units (ECUs) in vehicles. These efforts promote a systematic approach to assessing the quality of automotive security solutions and ensuring the implementation of robust security measures.
Designed for safety and security
In the automotive industry, safety and security are closely intertwined. Security vulnerabilities can directly impact vehicle safety, so it is essential to design systems that are both safe and secure.
Engineers implement numerous safety mechanisms in the hardware design to detect and control failures and ensure that the vehicle stays within safety requirements. Software security measures such as a secure boot process, authenticated updates, and secure messaging are implemented to protect your vehicle from potential cyber threats.
conclusion
As the automotive industry enters the era of hyper-connected and autonomous vehicles, safety and security have become key pillars of innovation. Ensuring functional safety and vehicle security is a collective responsibility shared by vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and industry stakeholders. The reliability and robustness of automotive electronics is essential to withstand the harsh environmental conditions faced by vehicles. Compliance with ASIL requirements increases consumer confidence in vehicle safety and reliability. Additionally, as vehicles become more connected and digital, robust cybersecurity measures are essential to protect against potential cyber threats. Encryption, hardware security modules, and built-in security models enhance the security of vehicle communications and protect data integrity.
Collaboration through industry initiatives will ensure the development of standardized security frameworks and best practices to further strengthen automotive security.
Designing vehicles that are both safe and secure is paramount to shaping a future where innovation and consumer safety go hand in hand. As the automotive industry continues to evolve, our strong commitment to functional safety and vehicle security drives the development of innovative and safe technologies that will shape the future of transportation.
Hitesh Garg is India Country Manager at NXP Semiconductors. The views expressed are personal.
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