5G is the new fad and with the technology developing at a rapid speed, connectivity using 5G has become the staple in modern gadgets and automobiles. While it is understandable that mobile phones are getting 5G, the automobile industry is also warming up to the technology. However, questions must be sprawling across your brain, asking if it is a good idea to have cars driven entirely by wireless technology? After all, the hackers might be able to crash you, sitting from the comfort of their home without leaving a trace. We thought the same and tried to dive into the discussion.
Reportedly, most cars being sold in the US, Europe, and even China are increasingly fitted with 5G. However, akin to any technological advancement, the 5G connectivity with the automobile is a double-edged sword.
Will help cut costs; both manufacturers and consumers would benefit
Talking about advantages, an ET report states that once all cars are equipped with 5G, the automakers will be able to tap into $40 billion in annual warranty cost avoidance.
Meanwhile, consumers will see $32 billion in annual lease/loan savings and dealers will see a $24 billion annual enhancement in revenue at the point of sale. The study by Strategy Analytics also claims that it will help the buyers have a considerable lofty post-sale value of the car as well.
Roger Lanctot, Director of Connected Mobility for Strategy Analytics was quoted as saying, “Until now, car connectivity was a take it or leave it value proposition for consumers. 5G will change all that.”
Will make auto-car assist much secure
One of the major advantages of a 5G installed car is that the latency will almost be zero. Human reaction on average takes above 200 milliseconds. However, 5G, for all practical reasons has a real-time reaction rate.
The future cars will benefit immensely from it as 5G will help in the development of advanced driver-assist systems capable of helping cars avoid collisions while facilitating self-driving vehicle operation.
With great speed, comes great threats
“With great power comes great responsibilities’ is a world-famous dialogue from the Spiderman franchise. However, in the case of 5G, the adage is slightly changed. With great speed, comes great threats.
However, there is a flip side to it as well. 5G communication is known for its lightning-quick speed which will allow the users to embrace speed and connectivity, on a scale hitherto unseen off.
From a peak speed perspective, 5G is 100 times faster than 4G and such speed breeds the chances of getting hacked manifolds.
If you want to understand the mass volume of data transfer we are talking about, have a crack at this data. According to Dr. Joy Laskar, CTO of Maja Systems future autonomous cars will generate nearly 2 petabits of data, which is equivalent to 2 million gigabits.
He said, “With an advanced Wi-Fi connection, it will take 230 days to transfer a week-worth of data from a self-driving car,”. However, with 5G, that time would go from 230 days to just over 2 days.
Connected cars first originated in 1996 with the introduction of the General Motors OnStar safety system. The hackers, since then have managed to devise ingenious ways to break into the cars and cause damage. The 5G technology may expedite the thirst of hackers to lay their hands upon sophisticated car machinery.
There are enough incidents that prove that hacking cars using the connectivity system can be a major nuisance in the immediate future.
Researchers have easily broken through modern cars and their defences
Reportedly, two researchers or “white hat hackers,” named Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek in 2015 took remote control of a Jeep Cherokee driven by Wired journalist Andy Greenberg. From a laptop computer 16km (10 miles) away, they were able to control the accelerator, brakes, air conditioning, windshield wipers, and even the radio, eventually “driving” the car into a ditch.
In 2018, a Tesla Model S became the target of researchers’ pursuit to understand the impact of 5G connectivity as well as its pitfalls. Utilizing about $600 worth of computing and radio equipment, Katholieke University researchers cloned the key fob of Tesla.
Similarly, in 2019 two security researchers, went after another Tesla and extracted personal data from Model 3. According to a CNBC report, the computers in the car revealed mobile phones and tablets had been paired over 170 times, as well as call logs, calendar entries, email addresses, and 73 navigation locations.
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The Car manufacturers are using aggressive marketing gimmicks like remote starting cars from as far as 500 feet away, controlling the air conditioning, as well as locking or unlocking the doors using smartphones. However, all this requires high-speed wireless connectivity and anything that is wireless has a good chance of getting tapped into.
Most hackers get in through stack overflows or other mechanisms. Hence, there is a need for a global cybersecurity protocol for the car manufacturers so that the buyers do not get entangled in the net of a hacker, driving and crashing their car.
