What happens if the autonomous vehicle you’re in gets hacked? Experts say it’s not a small concern and keeping the driverless cars’ data and systems secure should be top of mind. But they also say developers may not have considered all the possible risks.

Tripwire‘s State of Security blog addresses several areas AVs might be at risk:

  • If a hacker accesses the cloud database used by an AV, the car can be manipulated remotely.
  • Encrypting data for some safety features could slow down those features, but leaving them open makes them very vulnerable to hacking–and hackers could shut them down completely.
  • Every system made by each manufacturer uses its own coding system–there is no universal standard. If those manufacturers don’t all adhere to security standards or consider all risks and address them, some cars could be easily accessed by criminals.

Manufacturers’ resistance to sharing their technologies with each other, the blog says, raises the risk of hacking or other security flaws. And that’s a very scary thing. Read more about it here. Then let us know in the comments: Valid concerns or not enough information in play?

Written By
Tyler Perkins