• Hyundai Motor and Kia will link Samsung’s ‘SmartThings’ IoT (Internet of Things) platform to their connected car services
• The three companies aim to break the boundaries between living spaces and mobility spaces, enhancing the time value of driving before, during and after
• Customers can also experience seamless connectivity with OTA and USB-based updates

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation announced that they have signed an agreement on January 3 with Samsung Electronics for a Car-to-Home and Home-to-Car service partnership, aiming to enhance the connectivity between residential and mobility spaces.

Under this agreement, Hyundai and Kia customers will be able to remotely control digital appliances via touch and voice commands through their cars’ in-car infotainment systems. Conversely, they will have remote vehicle control via AI speakers, TVs and smartphone apps to control various vehicle functions.

This is made possible through the organic integration of Hyundai and Kia’s connected car services and Samsung’s Internet of Things (IoT) platform, ‘SmartThings’. Customers are expected to use it in various ways in their daily lives, enjoying uninterrupted connectivity experiences.

For example, on a hot summer evening commute, the user can activate the ‘Home Mode’ to turn on the registered air conditioner and air purifier, start the robot vacuum, and turn on the lights for a comfortable and pleasant living space. Alternatively, before going out, the user can initiate the ‘Away Mode’ to turn off unnecessary lights and start the robot vacuum to create a clean living space to return to, as well as pre-activate the vehicle’s air conditioning to a comfortable temperature.

In the case of Hyundai and Kia’s Car-to-Home service, users can register and use specific modes for each situation to minimize device operation while driving. In particular, location-based automatic operation, in addition to touchscreen and voice commands, will be implemented to provide more convenient service to customers.

In addition, electric vehicle owners can use SmartThings’ integrated home energy management service to check the energy usage of their home and vehicle and adjust the optimal charging times.

Hyundai and Kia plan to expand their Car-to-Home and Home-to-Car services to overseas customers by linking the connected car platforms and Samsung SmartThings.

To achieve this, Hyundai and Kia will develop stable service-providing infotainment systems, and subsequently provide these features through over-the-air (OTA) and USB-based updates even for existing vehicles.

“This is an opportunity to make the connected car’s Car-to-Home and Home-to-Car services more convenient in various fields,” said Haeyoung Kwon, Vice President of Hyundai and Kia’s Infotainment Development Center. “We plan to accelerate our technology development to continuously make global Hyundai and Kia customers’ journeys meaningful.”

“This collaboration will enable communication from Home-to-Car and integrated home energy management services that are optimized for future lifestyles,” said Chanwoo Park, Executive Vice President at Samsung Electronics.

“By connecting the SmartThings platform with vehicles, we’ll be able to significantly enhance the customer experience in both the home and the car.”

Meanwhile, Hyundai and Kia have already been providing Car-to-Home and Home-to-Car services through collaborations with telecommunication companies and construction companies. The Car-to-Home service — previously available for six items, including lighting, plugs, gas shut-off valves, ventilation, air conditioning and boilers — and the Home-to-Car service for vehicle air conditioning, remote start and charging management will be expanded to support connections with a wider range of devices through this partnership.

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According to a new research report by IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of users of carsharing services worldwide is forecasted to grow from 123.4 million people in 2022 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.9 percent to reach 269.4 million people in 2027.

Berg Insight forecasts that the number of vehicles used for carsharing services will grow at a CAGR of 11.2 percent from 575,000 at the end of 2022 to 979,000 at the end of 2027. The carsharing fleet grew 8.7 percent worldwide in 2022 and membership grew an impressive 43.8 percent worldwide.

“The number of people using carsharing services has increased rapidly in recent years, especially in Europe and Asia-Pacific”, said Martin Cederqvist, IoT analyst at Berg Insight.

Other markets that show promising signs are the South American and Middle Eastern markets. North America has struggled in recent years, but partly recovered in 2022, when the total fleet size and membership increased by 7.9 percent and 9.1 percent respectively.

CarSharing Organisations (CSOs) offer members access to a fleet of shared cars 24/7 from unattended self-service locations. Usage is billed by the minute/hour and by distance driven, with rates that include fuel, insurance and maintenance.

Today, most CSOs use station-based networks with roundtrip rental. This operational model requires members to return a vehicle to the same designated station from which it was accessed.

Another model that is rapidly gaining in popularity is free floating carsharing, which enables members to pick up and drop off cars anywhere within a designated area.

In recent years, a number of CSOs have also experimented with hybrid models of roundtrip rentals and free floating carsharing.

Mr. Cederqvist, said:

“Free floating carsharing has become increasingly popular and is expected to become the most common operational model in Europe in the coming years in terms of both membership and fleet size.”

A connected fleet and specialized software platforms are today necessary to run a carsharing business covering operational activities ranging from management of in-vehicle equipment, fleet management, booking management, billing, as well as operations supervision via dashboards and data analytics.

While some CSOs are using in-house developed hardware and software solutions for their operations, the majority sources these kinds of products and services from specialised technology vendors. Some of the vendors offer an end-to-end solution including both telematics equipment and software platforms while other vendors focus on one of the areas.

Leading vendors of hardware and software platforms include Invers, Convadis, Continental, Humax, Vulog, Ridecell, Optimum Automotive Group, Mobility Tech Green, OCTO Telematics, Targa Telematics and Glide.io.

Carsharing services are offered by specialist carsharing companies, car rental companies, carmakers, as well as public transport operators. Examples of leading CSOs backed by carmakers include Free2Move (owned by Stellantis), Volvo On Demand (owned by Volvo Cars), Zity (partly owned by Renault), Wible (owned by Kia) and Kinto Share (owned by Toyota).

“In recent years, a few carmakers have exited the carsharing market. BMW and Mercedes-Benz left the market when they sold their joint venture Share Now to Stellantis in 2022. Similarly, Volkswagen left the market in November 2022 as the carsharing service WeShare was acquired by the German CSO Miles. Stellantis now runs the leading carsharing operator in the car OEM segment Free2Move where Share Now is now incorporated”, said Mr. Cederqvist.

Sixt Share (owned by Sixt), Zipcar (owned by Avis Budget Group) and e-GO! Drivalia (owned by Leasys) are examples of carsharing companies owned by car rental and leasing players. Specialist CSOs include Times Car Plus (owned by the Japanese parking lot operator Park 24), Socar in South Korea, EvCard and Liandong Cloud in China, Enjoy (owned by the Italian energy company Eni), Mobility Carsharing in Switzerland, Miles, Stadtmobil and Cambio in Germany, Citiz in France, Communauto in Canada and GoGet in Australia.

“The top 30 carsharing service providers accounted for about 80 percent of the carsharing members and managed close to 64 percent of the carsharing fleet worldwide at the end of 2022”, concluded Mr. Cederqvist.

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WirelessCar, a leading innovator of connected vehicle services, today announced a major milestone of reaching ten million connected cars in over 100 countries.

Since its founding in 1999, WirelessCar has worked with many of the largest global automakers to develop, deliver and operate digital services worldwide.

Over the past twenty-plus years, WirelessCar has been an important part of the extensive mobility ecosystem. As the automotive industry continues to change at a rapid pace, WirelessCar has proven to be flexible and innovative, leading the charge towards automotive digitalization and realizing the true value of connected car services.

“WirelessCar is here to make a difference,” said Niklas Florén, CEO of WirelessCar. “Each new car validates our growth journey and shows that we evolve and bring innovation and scale to the future. With ten million safer, smarter and more sustainable connected cars, we showcase both for our customers and ourselves that we make all the difference today and are prepared for what is to come.”

Since its very first customer, Volvo Cars, together with whom it launched emergency call and Volvo On Call in 2000, WirelessCar has grown steadily: in the number of connected cars, people, OEM customers, and impact. The benefits of this growth are directly realized in its collaboration with OEMs, as new insights make WirelessCar and its services even better.

Greg Geiselhart, WirelessCar’s VP Sales & Marketing: “Reaching ten million connected cars across the world is no small feat. Over the years, we have overcome both technical and commercial challenges, large and small, to deliver robust and highly reliable services to our customers. We take that wealth of experience to benefit current and potential OEMs in launching best-in-class connected car services. Of course, we would not be where we are today without this collective knowledge from having ten million cars on the road!”

From a delivery and operational perspective, WirelessCar has proven to be a trusted partner when it comes to fulfilling its customers’ requirements for scalability, availability and reliability 24/7/365.

“To manage over ten million vehicles across more than 100 markets, we constantly investigate new possibilities to be efficient in our deliveries,” said Jessica Nymark, COO of WirelessCar. “This covers not only utilizing new technologies, but also optimizing our way of working as well as applying the knowledge we gain from our services in operation to continuously evolve them.”

Looking ahead to 2023 and beyond, WirelessCar’s focus on technological innovation will become even more important.

“While scaling from zero to ten million vehicles we have led the industry through several technological shifts such as the adoption of public cloud, microservice architectures, modern IP communication protocols and mobile apps,” said Tomas Carlfalk, CTO of WirelessCar.

“On the journey to 100 million connected vehicles, we are already leading the way with our SaaS product offerings that enable OEMs to increase the speed of innovation of value-added, end user services.”

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Quectel Wireless Solutions, a global IoT and automotive solutions provider, today announces the launch of its new AG18 module, one of the next generation of Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) modules.

Featuring PC5 direct communications, the module enables vehicles to effectively communicate with one another and with their surroundings, ensuring improved safety and traffic efficiency.

The AG18 supports vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communications on the unified 5.9GHz intelligent transportation system (ITS) band without the need of a (U)SIM, cellular subscription, or network assistance.

In addition to superior C-V2X communication capabilities, the AG18 module features flexible positioning service options including L1+L5 dual frequency GNSS, Qualcomm Dead Reckoning (QDR3) and high-precision PPE (RTK) technologies, ensuring that global automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers can leverage location technology appropriate to their application requirements.

Norbert Muhrer, President and CSO of Quectel, said:

“C-V2X has been accepted worldwide as a core technology to support high level ADAS and autonomous driving. The AG18 module will enable the large-scale commercial deployment of C-V2X around the globe.”

“It provides enhanced PC5 direct communications and positioning capabilities while significantly reducing the total build cost. The AG18 has already been recognized by several well-known car brands and been selected for critical automotive applications in their next generation vehicles.”

Based upon the AEC-Q100 qualified Qualcomm SA415M chipset, the AG18 complies with the international IATF 16949:2016 automotive quality management system. It is designed for use in extremely harsh environments and provides superior ESD/EMI protection performance.

The AG18 is pin-to-pin compatible with Quectel’s previous-generation C-V2X module AG15, allowing existing OEM customer devices to migrate seamlessly and upgrade through a simple drop-in replacement that will greatly reduce their design cost and development time. Additionally, the AG18 includes multiple interfaces including PCIe, USB 3.0/2.0, SPI, I2C, UART, GPIO, ADC and 1pps, enabling customers to develop a wide range of applications including Telematics Control Unit (TCU), Telematics BOX (T-BOX), Virtual Box (V-BOX) and Roadside Unit (RSU).

As a global supplier of automotive solutions, Quectel has developed a rich C-V2X portfolio for automotive-related applications, including the C-V2X module AG18/ AG15, the C-V2X AP module AG215S, the AG52xR series of LTE-A + C-V2X modules as well as the AG55xQ series of 5G + C-V2X modules, which ensures technological continuity for future customer plans for intelligent cars and transport systems.

Together with C-V2X modules, Quectel also offers a variety of high-performance C-V2X antennas, already in use in the autonomous car market. The C-V2X antenna can be mounted on the upper side of front and rear windshields of the vehicle or hidden inside the shark fin antenna. Besides, Quectel’s C-V2X antenna can achieve two-way compensation for antenna signal loss, bringing excellent performance even when the harness length is more than 4 meters.

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Avanci’s one-stop licensing marketplace now covers more than 100 million connected vehicles on the world’s roads.

Avanci announced that more than 100 million connected vehicles sold by more than 80 automotive brands are covered by an Avanci license, and that it predicts an additional 30-40 million connected vehicles to be licensed in the next year.

Having licensed the majority of patented 2G, 3G, and 4G cellular technologies to the majority of the connected vehicle market, Avanci is the established industry solution for essential patent licensing in the automotive space.

“We are incredibly pleased with the overwhelming adoption of our solution across both the telecommunications and automotive industries,” said Kasim Alfalahi, founder and chief executive officer of Avanci.

“This level of participation validates our long-standing commitment to offer a simple, predictable and efficient solution for the Internet of Things, benefiting new technology adoption. We look forward to making licensing simpler and more efficient for a wide range of companies, as we explore new programs for massive, critical, and industrial IoT.”

“We are grateful to all the participants in our automotive licensing program for joining our effort to create a new way to license patents. Our work to date is a strong foundation for building our planned program for 5G connected vehicles,” added Laurie Fitzgerald, Senior Vice President at Avanci.

The auto makers participating in Avanci’s licensing program for 4G connected vehicles benefit from a license to all the 2G, 3G, and 4G cellular standard essential patents of the 51 patent owners participating as licensors in the program today, as well as patent owners that join as licensors in the future. Many of the new brands under license can be found at avanci.com/marketplace.

Avanci has transformed the way companies share technology by licensing intellectual property from dozens of different patent owners in a single transaction, at fixed rates, paid once for the lifetime of the product. By streamlining the technology sharing process, Avanci provides IoT companies with an efficient and transparent way to access the wireless technology needed for connected products.

The post Avanci Expands 4G Coverage to Over 80 Auto Brands appeared first on IoT Business News.

Secure telematics data management to enhance intelligence operations and unlock monetization opportunities in V2X.

Optimizing services for secure data management in connected vehicle telematics is vital to further hone intelligence operations and unlock new IoT security monetization in V2X applications, according to a new report by global technology intelligence firm ABI Research.

“Telematics applications stand at the very core of car OEMs’ intelligence strategy, producing an ever-increasing amount of data and supporting key operations including, among others, fleet management, vehicle connectivity optimization, firmware-over-the-air (FOTA) updates, and predictive maintenance. While car OEMs partially adopt new security measures out of necessity due to compliance and regulatory requirements, the fact of the matter is that they do need to adapt V2X applications to meet the demands of the greater IoT ecosystems. OEMs are steadily starting to recognize the value of having a security-first approach in connected vehicles,” explains Dimitrios Pavlakis, Senior IoT Security Analyst at ABI Research.

Secure telematics data management can be tackled by adopting a more unified approach. Rather than simply “pushing” security to the cloud, secure telematics need to originate in the vehicle itself. Vehicle systems are evolving into a highly complex and interconnected network spanning multiple control/processing units, generating an ever-increasing amount of data, and funneling it into one component geared for external communications: the Telematics Control Unit (TCU).

Every single data point captured by vehicle systems and gateways, communicated through cellular networks, and analyzed in the cloud by car OEMs and Telematics Service Providers (TSPs) originates from TCU communication modules. A simple eSIM incorporated into telematics devices is enough to secure external communications for many telematics suppliers and car OEMs.

Pavlakis says:

“It is astonishing that automotive data security management rests on this unique technology when the monetization opportunity is significantly higher. The concept of “simply embedding the TCU with an eSIM” is merely a connectivity-enabler, not a scalable security approach.”

Many automotive market players rely very heavily on cloud security to ensure their customers and end-user data is properly gathered, stored, and managed. However, there are multiple value chains prior to the cloud, starting with identity issuance at the manufacturing stage for telematics devices, secure firmware installation and code issuance for software components, certificate management and proper ownership migration, provisioning, and onboarding, establishing trust with third-party services, streamlining in-vehicle network operations, privacy, and secure data management, among many others.

Pavlakis concludes, “There is no future scenario in the era of the software-defined vehicle that excludes the further investment of hardware, software, and network security options. Obtaining reliable telematics data and protecting vehicle communications directly contributes to data monetization and aligns with the future of V2X and intelligent vehicle processes.”

Companies leading in the space are offering telematics-specific eUICCs and embedded firmware solutions (Thales), embedded hardware security for V2X (Infineon), connectivity platforms and Vehicle SoCs (Ericsson), high-tier security connected vehicle network and data security (Blackberry), and software-defined vehicle and security architecture consulting services (Tata Elxi and Upstream).

The post Over 100 million Connected Car Shipments Projected by 2027 Underscores the Need for Secure Telematics and Vehicle Cybersecurity appeared first on IoT Business News.

Connected cars using technology from the international technology group Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) are equiped with two eSIM cards: one is used for eCalls, navigation or traffic information services, the other for the driver’s private information and entertainment services.

The technical base is G+D’s DSDA solution (Dual-SIM Dual-Active) and AirOn360 eSIM management platform. These solutions are also used in the BMW iX and BMW i4 and will be available in other new BMW Group models in the future.

In most cases, connectivity is provided by the SIM modules that are already factory-installed in smart devices such as smartphones, smartwatches and smart home devices. Modern vehicles also get equipped with this technology. These so-called embedded SIMs (eSIMs) have been made mandatory since March 2018 in the EU due to their automatic emergency call system, eCall.

When it comes to connected cars, G+D is now taking it one step further together with the BMW Group, as the vehicles will be equipped with two independent eSIM modules. The basis is the DSDA concept, which is now market-ready and takes a user-centric approach to connectivity. The so-called telematics eSIM ensures the manufacturer’s digital services such as eCall, navigation or traffic information, while the personal eSIM is used for information and entertainment applications of the driver and their passengers.

G+D’s DSDA solution is implemented in the BMW iX and the BMW i4 and will also be available for other BMW Group models in the future. Private digital services in the vehicle can be used by passengers in parallel with car-to-cloud communication for BMW Group telematics services. A second mobile connection is established for the personal eSIM, regardless of the network provider used by the car manufacturer to provide its services.

The driver has thus immediately access to all mobile services such as video or music streaming. An additional advantage is the wide functionality of the eSIM: Multiple personal eSIM profiles can be stored so that the entire family can also access their private digital services when using the car.
The DSDA solution and eSIM profile provisioning and management are handled by a single, unified solution: the AirOn360 eSIM management platform from G+D. It supports secure lifecycle management of eSIMs. The platform complies with all specifications for remote SIM provisioning set by the GSMA. By using modern IP-based IT architecture standards and protocols, there is a fully owned eSIM provisioning guarantee.

The new solution offers several benefits to both car manufacturers and buyers. Manufacturers can offer infotainment and telematics services to their customers via a central eSIM management platform, with separate accounts, tariffs and mobile connections. For buyers, the DSDA solution brings private connectivity to the car.

This separation of networks also facilitates the path to meeting the different regulatory requirements in many countries. This is especially relevant, for example, when issuing telecommunications licenses for consumer-oriented ISP services (Internet Service Provider services) or for M2M and telematics services.
Last but not least, thanks to the DSDA principle, the previously common but costly Bluetooth pairing of the smartphone with the vehicle, becomes redundant. This is necessary, for example, for the use of the hands-free system. There are several problems associated with Bluetooth pairing. First, the manufacturer must ensure Bluetooth compatibility of the vehicle with a variety of different mobile devices and software versions. Second, with this approach, transmission and reception quality is compromised by vehicle shielding because the mobile device’s antennas are used. With DSDA, on the other hand, the external vehicle antenna is utilized, which ensures high signal quality.

Carsten Ahrens, CEO of G+D Mobile Security, emphasizes:

“Today’s drivers have different expectations of a car than in the past. They rely on navigation systems with always up-to-date maps and traffic information, want to consume multimedia internet content, work and make phone calls in the car, or search for the next free charging station. This means that modern infotainment systems must allow flexible personalization based on user profiles that also regulate access to the internet in the car.”

“We are pleased that G+D has been the solution partner for the BMW Group in the area of eSIM for many years – and now also for the new Dual-SIM Dual-Active solution. Together, we are creating the basic requirement for a new kind of individually networked mobility.”

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• Automotive manufacturers Toyota and Mazda leverage connected car capabilities for improved customer experience

• A seamless connected car platform covers 63 European countries/territories

KDDI, a Japanese telecommunications service provider, has selected Orange Business Services to provide a customized IoT platform for Japanese automotive manufacturers Toyota and Mazda.

The platform will allow them to offer connected car capabilities in their vehicles sold across Europe.

The Orange solution will initially enable the Japanese automotive manufacturers to offer connected services across 63 European countries/territories, via Orange cellular connectivity.

The Orange Business Services connectivity management solution integrates directly into KDDI’s own platform and provides secure, reliable IoT connectivity for Toyota and Mazda to enhance the driver experience through advanced services. Cloud connections are made using Orange backbone networks, offering high-performance and secured interconnections between the parties’ platforms.

Enhancing the European driving experience

“Connected IoT services are paramount to enhance the drive experience for our customers. The bespoke Orange IoT platform provides new levels of convenience in terms of personalized services to Toyota and Mazda across Europe. This allows their drivers to benefit from the very best in safety, security and in-car experience,” says Mr. Ken Sakai, Managing Director of KDDI Europe, Ltd.

Valerie Cussac, Senior Vice President, Smart Mobility Services, Orange Business Services, says:

“Today’s most innovative car manufacturers are leveraging IoT to deliver on the drive experience consumers are demanding. Following extensive consultancy and a pilot with KDDI, we have delivered on a tailor-made IoT platform that will enable innovative connected services to provide drivers with enhanced levels of safety and convenience.”

The post KDDI Partners With Orange Business Services to Equip More Than One Million Vehicles in Europe With Connected IoT Services appeared first on IoT Business News.

• Integration of Ericsson’s Connected Vehicle Cloud and Microsoft Connected Vehicle Platform enables automakers to accelerate the delivery of new connected car services worldwide
• Connected vehicle cloud as-a-service to reduce complexity, enable innovation, and simplify the application development in automotive industry

Ericsson and Microsoft are bringing their connected vehicle expertise together.

Ericsson is building its Connected Vehicle Cloud on top of the Microsoft Connected Vehicle Platform that is running on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform. The integrated solution allows automakers to deploy and scale global vehicle services such as fleet management, over-the-air software updates and connected safety services much easier and faster while reducing costs. It provides flexibility through modular design and multiple deployment options.

Ericsson’s Connected Vehicle Cloud connects more than 4 million vehicles across 180 countries worldwide – approximately 10 percent of the connected vehicle market. The platform is tailored to fit vehicle manufacturers’ growing demand for scalability and flexibility with the capability of supporting any connected vehicle service.

Ericsson’s Connected Vehicle Cloud offloads vehicle manufacturers’ complexity of global 24/7 operations and lifecycle management related to connected vehicles with a guaranteed service-level agreement.

The Microsoft Connected Vehicle Platform (MCVP) empowers automotive companies to accelerate the delivery of safe, comfortable and personalized connected driving experiences. It combines cloud infrastructure, edge technology as well as AI and IoT services with a diverse partner ecosystem. With MCVP, Microsoft offers a consistent, cloud-connected platform across all digital scenarios on top of which customer-facing solutions can be built, including in-vehicle infotainment, advanced navigation, autonomous driving, telematics and prediction services, and over-the-air updates. MCVP includes the hyperscale, global availability, and regulatory compliance that comes with Microsoft Azure.

Åsa Tamsons, Senior Vice President and Head of Business Area Technologies & New Businesses, says:

“The Ericsson and Microsoft partnership will deliver a comprehensive connected vehicle platform at scale to the market. Our integrated solutions will help automotive manufacturers accelerate their global connected vehicle solutions and offer a better experience for drivers and passengers.”

“This is an exciting new offering with great benefits for the automotive industry, leveraging Ericsson and Microsoft’s technology leadership in connectivity and cloud.”

Peggy Johnson, Executive Vice President, Business Development at Microsoft says:
“Together with Ericsson, we intend to simplify the development of connected vehicle services to help car makers focus on their customers’ needs and accelerate the delivery of unique, tailor-made driving experiences.”

The post Ericsson and Microsoft team up for the next generation of connected cars appeared first on IoT Business News.

This article explores the security issues the automotive industry must address as it becomes more connected.

The global market for connected cars is forecast to grow significantly over the next few years as innovations in connectivity transform the automotive industry. The benefits to consumers are numerous: connectivity offers drivers everything from high definition streaming media, Wi-Fi access, improved entertainment systems, to the ability to remotely control aspects of the vehicle using mobile phone applications, such as the locking/unlocking and ignition mechanisms.

However, as with any other device that connects to the internet, there is a potential risk to automotive security from cyber criminals. Security breaches can result in leaked personal data, threats to a vehicle’s essential security and safety mechanisms and, in extreme cases, full remote control of the car. And, as the industry moves towards more autonomous vehicles, these risks are only set to increase due to reliance on applications, connectivity and more complex and integrated electronic components.

Failure to address these risks could have a catastrophic effect on consumer confidence, privacy, brand reputation, and most importantly, customer safety.

What are the top 10 security risks for connected cars?

1. Theft of personal data. As the number of sensors in vehicles increase rapidly, there is the potential for hackers to steal personally-identifiable information (PII) from the vehicle’s systems, such as personal trip and location data, entertainment preferences and even financial information.

2. Vehicle theft. As digital keys, wireless key fobs and mobile applications replace traditional physical car keys, car thieves can gain unauthorized entry to the vehicle. This can be done by intercepting communication between a smartphone or wireless key fob and the vehicle, using devices that extend the range of the wireless signal and emulate the wireless key to access a vehicle using the owner’s own wireless key fob, if the owner is still near their vehicle. Managing virtual car keys can be as difficult as managing physical keys, if not carried out correctly. Enrolment of a key, validation of an ‘unlock’ attempt and, most importantly, revocation, must all be handled securely.

3. Connection risks. Cyber criminals can exploit flaws in a vendor’s implementation. Given that security has sometimes been an afterthought for connected cars and their components, this creates an easy target for hackers exploiting vulnerabilities using cellular networks, Wi-Fi, and physical connections. Furthermore, connected vehicles need to be able to trust, and be trusted by, the components and service(s) that they connect to.

4. Manipulation of safety-critical systems. There is the potential for hackers to take control of safety-critical aspects of a vehicle’s operation – for example, by compromising the cruise control system to manipulate steering and braking.

5. Mobile application security vulnerabilities. As more mobile apps are released by manufacturers for communicating with vehicles, the more these become a target for bad actors. For example, in the case of the Nissan Leaf, security testers demonstrated how they could gain unauthorized access to control the heated steering wheel, seats, fans and aircon remotely. In an electric vehicle, this can drain the battery and render it immobile. According to Gartner, 75% of mobile applications fail basic security tests. The number of security vulnerabilities in the Android and iOS mobile operating systems are also a source of concern.

6. Lack of “designed-in” security. The automotive industry has little historical experience of dealing with cybersecurity risks and this has become evident from the lack of security built into many of the software and hardware components in the first generations of connected cars. Furthermore, there appears to be a lack of adequate education about secure coding practices and rigorous security testing, much of which takes place too late in the product development lifecycle. And, to cut component costs, some safety-critical and non-safety-critical functions may share resources (processor cores, physical connectivity or internet access). Designing from the ground up, from the perspective of a hostile environment, is the only way to build “Secure by Design” systems that will be robust in the long term.

7. Security vulnerabilities in the complex supply chain. Automotive manufacturers rely heavily upon third party vendors to supply systems, software and hardware components for their vehicles. However, unless auto manufacturers impose rigorous cybersecurity requirements on their tier 1 and 2 suppliers, they run the risk of introducing security vulnerabilities via these components. Counterfeit components can also enter the supply chain, threatening safety by reducing wear ratings, overriding safety limits etc. Any component responsible for primary activities, such as braking, clearly needs to meet the highest standards of security.

8. Failure to keep up with the latest security patches and updates. As new threats and attacks are discovered, the only effective solution is to ensure that the platforms can be easily and securely updated once deployed into the field. Many of these updates are delivered through supplied software, components and systems which rely upon wireless communications networks connected to personal computing devices, with their own inherent security challenges.

9. Inadequate key management processes. Although most automotive manufacturers use key management systems for the management of cryptographic keys, some still use a manual process, limiting their usefulness and hampering security.

10. In Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) vulnerabilities. Innovations in vehicle entertainment systems – everything from sat nav to high-definition streaming media – bring benefits to drivers, but these platforms increasingly provide services that make use of sensitive data and are security-critical to vehicles and end-users. Both Android and Apple offer infotainment systems and vehicle-centric app stores, and there are opportunities for combining applications like payment and social networking with more vehicle-centric needs, such as tolls, parking and journey planning. Linking these worlds introduces new possibilities, but it also brings with it the threat that app-centric malware could attack the automotive platform.

Ben Cade, CEO at Trustonic

The post Top Ten Security Challenges for Connected Cars appeared first on IoT Business News.

The automotive industry has come a long way from the early fossil fuel-driven vehicles to those including hybrid and fully electric systems, but aside from power-type advancements, car manufacturers have been making leaps in other areas. Today’s developments have seen the advent of connected and self-driven cars, allowing for an unheard-of level of autonomy.

While self-driven cars are only an emerging technology, connected cars have already been on the market for a while. Connected vehicles are fitted with devices which enable them to connect with the external environment. This includes sharing and obtaining information via mobile broadband (3G-5G), Wi-Fi, or satellite communication technology within internet of things (IoT) networks.

However, due to the developing complexity, connected cars require in-depth quality assurance at the software level to verify that they keep up with their suggested functionality levels.

Testing specialists use various methods to ensure the quality and safety of IoT-powered vehicles. Let’s briefly overview the software testing techniques implemented in the vehicle manufacturing industry, but first, we need to look at how data actually travels within and between connected cars.

How Data Is Shared and Utilized in Connected Vehicles

Before diving straight into testing methodologies, it’s vital to understand how data is shared and utilized in connected vehicles. Data collection, sharing, and use is the backbone of how connected car technology operates. It can be divided into five levels:

1. Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) is used by a car to notify the driver about the surrounding infrastructure, for example, traffic safety, traffic congestion, accidents, nearby parking, and zones under construction.

2. Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) is used by a car to inform other road users about its location to eliminate accidents and reduce traffic congestion.

3. Vehicle to Cloud (V2C) is the communication route where internal sensors monitor car conditions and send the data obtained into a cloud system for it to be evaluated and diagnosed, much like predictive maintenance techniques. In addition, manufacturers can improve and upgrade a car’s software, accommodating and tuning their functionality without the driver’s input.

4. Vehicle to Pedestrian (V2P) is used by a car to detect and notify other road users about people on the road. The system can inform other vehicles or alert pedestrians, especially those with disabilities, by calling or sending messages to their smartphones about possible dangers.

5. Vehicle to Everything (V2X) is used to exchange data between a car and other road infrastructure objects, such as road signs, traffic lights, or road markings for road service improvement.

These systems are complex and require accuracy, which is why various testing methods are applied to ensure car safety, the integrity of human life, and the systems’ reliability. For this, vehicles can be tested in various environments:

• In-laboratory testing implies hardware and software testing in a set and controlled environment; for example, engineers may recreate particular weather patterns or road surfaces. Also, a car can be checked for electrical safety, wireless connection, or performance of individual equipment parts.
• On-road testing involves testing in extemporary conditions to evaluate such parameters as functionality, safety, and resilience in real-world conditions.
• Virtual environment testing also creates real-world conditions by capturing in-field data and turning it into testing scenarios, at the same time monitoring each part of a vehicle.

Mitigating Risks with Connected Car Testing

With connected car technologies rapidly advancing year by year, applying correct testing solutions is critical. These solutions generally relate to two types of systems:

• Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) use various sensors, cameras, and alarms to monitor the overall condition and road situation, showing the gathered data on a monitor to enhance the driver’s performance on the road.

Internal environment sensors can monitor speed, parking positions, indicators, high beam lights, and other. External environment sensors include lane departure, forward collision, pedestrian collision, and other warnings.

• Telematics systems assist drivers in better routing by using GPS navigation and real-time data exchange with the сloud. It can help with driving in various weather conditions and across different terrains as well as adjust schedules, for example, for truck drivers. This technology can also provide feedback on the driver’s road behavior to encourage vehicle operators to improve their driving skills.

ADAS and telematics systems should be of a high standard and quality as they are responsible for vehicle performance and, as a result, for human life. A lack of testing can lead to failures in internal car parts, which can ultimately result in vehicle or wireless connector breakages. This can cause disorientation for the car due to the absence of communication with the outside world.

These systems require bug detection at an early stage of software development, as well as continuous testing to ensure quality throughout the vehicle lifecycle. To prevent damaging consequences, QA engineers use various types of testing, such as:

• Performance testing to verify software endurance under extreme workloads, as well as the amount of data it can handle. The speed and amount of data exchanged with the cloud are also among the parameters tested here.
• Interoperability testing to check the compatibility of communication protocols between different parts of the system, for example, ensuring that IoT systems can exchange and provide data on vehicle parts.
• Security and access control testing to analyze malware attack risks and the possibility of unauthorized access to sensitive data, among other cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
• Regression testing to identify and handle bugs that surfaced during code changes. It’s used to ensure impeccable software quality with every update.

Frequently, these types of testing need to be automated to run continuously, especially with the great amounts of data nodes found in IoT networks. Many companies refer to automation testing services to accelerate testing speed, decrease the number of code bugs, and optimize the time it takes to get software products to market, among other sought-out advantages.

Testing for Road Safety

Software testing is one of the disciplines not to be overlooked when stuffing connected cars with intelligent semi-autonomous systems. Ultimately, it not only helps minimize the number of bugs and mitigate software downtime risks but also determines reliability and thus prevents a number of accidents on our roads.

The post Testing for Connected Cars – How Does It Work? appeared first on IoT Business News.

• Reflects growing importance of IoT for connecting cars and drivers to enable ubiquitous, personalized and convenient travel

• Company will co-lead task force on Smart Cities

Avis Budget Group today announced it has become a member of The Internet of Things Consortium (IoTC).

The company has joined the consortium given the critical role that IoT technologies are playing in Avis Budget Group’s strategy to making mobility more ubiquitous, personalized and convenient.

“The Internet of Things industry gave birth to today’s Internet of Transportation industry which offers significant benefits to consumers, cities and mobility companies like Avis Budget Group,” said Arthur Orduña, chief innovation officer at Avis Budget Group.

“From streamlined operations, to better customer experiences and enhanced data, the IoT is enabling a revolution in urban mobility, and we’re right at the center of it.”

From its acquisition of Zipcar in 2013, to its industry-leading investment in connected cars, to the rapid adoption of its mobile app and to its pioneering Mobility Lab in Kansas City, Avis Budget Group has been leveraging IoT technology to offer its customers the most flexible and convenient on-demand mobility options. Whether it’s a vehicle by the minute, hour, day, week or year; whether you’re driving yourself or being driven; whether it’s a sports car or a sports utility vehicle, Avis Budget Group makes mobility available at the tap of an app.

“Avis Budget Group is leading the way in connecting cars and customers to its mobility platform, showcasing yet another benefit of the IoT industry,” said Greg Kahn, President and CEO of the IoTC. “The company is a great addition to our network and we look forward to their leadership role on the Smart Cities Task Force.”

“We’ve really just scratched the surface of what’s possible as we continue to leverage IoT technologies within our platform, our mobile app and our fleet,” continued Orduña. “As today’s connected cars give way to tomorrow’s autonomous cars, the potential for enhancing the customer experience is even more magnified, but it will require deep coordination across the public and private sector, which is why we’re pleased to join IoTC and co-lead a Smart Cities Task Force.”

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Huawei, today gained a strong partner for the development of intelligent connected vehicles signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a strategic cooperation with Audi, the German automobile manufacturer, today.

The agreement forms part of a broad-based partnership between the companies in the two countries initiated by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“We are entering a new era of intelligent vehicles that will see the emergence of new technological synergies between information and communications technology and the automotive industries,” said Veni Shone, President of LTE Solution, Huawei, adding: “With increased innovation in mobile connectivity, Huawei is committed to transforming the driving experience.”

The cooperation between Huawei and Audi is also intended to facilitate the ongoing advancement of intelligent driving and the digitalization of services in the vehicle environment. To this end, the parties have additionally agreed to jointly develop training programs in order to strengthen the skills of technology experts in both of these areas. Intelligent connected vehicles allow relevant information to be exchanged between the vehicle and the surrounding environment. To achieve this, cars need a high-quality, stable data connection. The expansion of this communication requires intensive research and development.

“We are intensifying our joint research with Huawei in the area of intelligent connected vehicles,” explained Saad Metz, Executive Vice President of Audi China, adding:

“Our aim is to improve safety and optimize traffic flows in order to create intelligent cities. The concepts will be concentrated initially on the Chinese market.”

Working in cooperation with Huawei and the Chinese authorities, Audi became the first foreign automobile manufacturer to participate in the first-time deployment of “LTE-V” on public roads in the megacity of Wuxi in eastern China in 2017. “LTE-V” is a mobile communication standard, which is specially tailored for connected cars. Drivers were provided with real-time traffic information via connections to traffic light systems and video monitoring at intersections.

In September 2018, the project will enter its next phase at the “World Internet of Things Exposition” in Wuxi with an even broader range of applications.

Before the signing of this MoU, Huawei and Audi have cooperated in many areas related to intelligent connected vehicles in recent years. The two companies initiated the telecom-vehicle cross industry organization 5GAA and have held several joint demos/trials in various countries including Germany, Spain and China, ensuring the vibrant growth of the intelligent connected vehicles industry.

The post Huawei and Audi Sign MoU for Strategic Cooperation on Connected Vehicles appeared first on IoT Business News.

Between smart phones, tablets, smart watches, activity trackers, smart TVs, and laptop computers, people today spend more of their waking hours connected to the Internet – and to each other – than ever before. The Internet isn’t just something you use on a computer anymore – smart devices mean that connectivity is changing every aspect of the way we live our lives.

But what about the way we get from place to place and transport goods?
Yes, the Internet is changing that, too. The Internet of Things (IoT) – this growing network of connected devices is also changing the way we ship goods and travel from place to place. Driverless cars are just the beginning; soon air travel, freight shipping, and even public transport could be revolutionized by IoT used in combination with technologies like AI and Big Data.

Smart Cars and Self-Driving Transport

By 2020, there could be 10 million self-driving cars on the road. But that’s just the beginning; 250 million more smart cars may not be entirely autonomous, but will possess high-tech networking capabilities that could open up new navigational and safety possibilities for drivers. Many new cars being sold right now already come with features like lane-keep assist, automatic forward-collision braking, back-up cameras, automatic parking, and sign recognition that make driving safer and take some of the burden of transport off of the human driver.

But, in the near future, car ownership may become an old-fashioned relic of an unenlightened past. Soon, most people may not even own their own cars; when they need to go somewhere, they’ll call a driverless car that will appear, ferry them to their destination, and then scuttle off to fetch the next customer. Instead of the four front-facing seats found in today’s cars, driverless cars of the future may feature two sets of seats that face each other, so that passengers can socialize while the car does all the work. Car sharing is already a popular means of transport, especially in cities, where owning a car of one’s own often isn’t worth the hassle. The only difference will be that, instead of going to find a car and then searching for an appropriate place to park it, you’ll just sit back and wait for the car to come to you.

Air Taxis

One of the great disappointments of modern life may be that, when the future came, it did not bring flying cars. But that could be about to change. A company named Volocopter recently tested a flying taxi service in Dubai. The taxi, which is similar to a helicopter, is still in the development phase; the initial test, with passenger Crown Prince Shiekh Hamdan bin Mohammed, lasted only five minutes. But someday soon, residents and tourists in at least one city will be able to escape rush-hour gridlock in an air taxi.

Autonomous Freight Shipping

It isn’t just individual transportation that’s become more automated. Freight trucks, cargo ships, and front-door delivery is on its way to automation. Companies including Uber, Daimler Trucks, and Einride have already launched fully-autonomous freight shipping trucks that could soon leave many in the trucking industry looking for work. Some of these prototypes require a human operator to take the wheel when conditions become dangerous; others are entirely self-driving, and can be operated remotely. Self-driving truck platoons are expected to make freight shipping more efficient and sustainable.

International freight shipping via cargo ships is also changing. Rolls Royce has developed a remote-controlled cargo ship that can be operated entirely without human crew members. The ship is operated from a control room on land. Because the ship has no need for the accommodations human crew require, it can hold more cargo than a traditional ship, and without the need to hire a full crew, moving that cargo is cheaper. The company expects to put a fleet of these ships into commission by 2020. In fact, the day could soon come when the delivery of an item from warehouse to consumer is performed almost entirely by robots; Amazon’s Prime Air service is already promising customers in some areas delivery of their orders in 30 minutes or less, courtesy of an unmanned drone.

Thanks to the growing network of IoT devices, life is changing in ways we couldn’t even have imagined 15 or 20 years ago. Transportation is changing, too. Thanks to embedded IoT connectivity combined with edge computing, the new face of transportation promises to be cheaper, easier, safer, and more convenient.

The post From Smart Cars to Cargo Ships: How IoT Is Changing Transportation appeared first on IoT Business News.

Using the cutting-edge application processing and wireless capabilities of the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ automotive modems, Cubic aims to offer a new advanced connectivity management solution to aid vehicle manufacturers, and content and system providers, to future-proof their products and technologies over the lifetime of the vehicle.

The solution is designed to support automakers with over-the-air feature updates and applications, network and vehicle analytics, and the ability to help drive connected vehicle services worldwide – using a single architecture that takes advantage of multiple wireless operator deployments across regions. The connectivity management solution has been optimized and showcased using a Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X16 Gigabit LTE modem.

Barry Napier, CEO of Cubic Telecom, said:
“Qualcomm Technologies has been a steadfast supporter of Cubic Telecom and we are delighted to move our working relationship forward to offer an innovative solution to the automotive industry.”

“Joining forces with the leading semiconductor company in telematics means that our new Cubic Telecom’s solution can become widely available to automotive customers in the near future.”

“Cars are now platforms for innovation, new business models and services, and connectivity is the foundation,” said Nakul Duggal, vice president, product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “Cubic Telecom’s unique connectivity management solution complements our automotive platform to empower automakers with the ability to provide connected car services on a global scale, and the flexibility to work with multiple network operators per region.”

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Acquisition will create unique value proposition for automotive Industry.

Bright Box HK Limited (Bright Box) announced that it has been acquired by Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich).

Bright Box was founded in 2012, has operations in Europe and conducts business globally. It provides a turn-key connected car platform that links drivers to their vehicles, and the vehicles to networks of car dealers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

Bright Box already has business relationships with leading global OEMs and hundreds of dealerships worldwide, providing the entire stack of connected car technology like cloud IT platform, mobile and web apps, telematics hardware, as well as the connectivity between them.

Zurich’s strategy is focused on providing simple and innovative propositions through products and services centered on customer needs. Bright Box will contribute to further expanding Zurich’s focus on mobility through tailored services, enhanced by digital interactions with car drivers and closer collaboration with car dealers and OEMs.

Giovanni Giuliani, Group Chief Strategy, Innovation and Business Development Officer, said:

“We are excited by the potential that Bright Box brings to further strengthen our offerings to car drivers and the companies that support their needs. By enhancing our capabilities in data insights and analysis, we will be able to provide our customers more tailored and convenient solutions, which is in line with our strategy.”

“It is a great honor and tremendous opportunity for us to be part of Zurich with its strong international brand and ability to lead the way in the fast-changing environment of automotive insurance,” says Ken Belotsky, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Bright Box.

Bright Box will continue to operate as a separate business entity and all co-founders of the company, including Ivan Mishanin (CEO), Alex Dimchenko (CSO) and Ken Belotsky (Executive Chairman), will continue to manage its operations leveraging capabilities provided by the new shareholder.

The post Zurich Insurance Group acquires Bright Box to strengthen capabilities in connected cars appeared first on IoT Business News.

Pioneer in Internet of Things and connected vehicles latest member to contribute expertise to Together for Safer Roads.

Together for Safer Roads (TSR), a coalition of global private sector companies working together to improve road safety, welcomes CalAmp as the newest member of the coalition.

CalAmp, a pure-play pioneer of Internet of Things (IoT) enablement solutions offering a range of road safety services, including LoJack, CrashBoxx, FleetOutlook, and SureDrive, will contribute its innovative technology to advance TSR’s mission of bending the curve on road traffic collisions.

Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Irvine, Calif., CalAmp’s road safety solutions have become services that businesses around the world rely on. These services, including stolen vehicle recovery, maintenance support, crash detection and instant notification, guardian services, and mobile applications, focus on a variety of challenges in road safety that provide positive results for companies and their fleets.

“Vehicles are a top safety vulnerability and reducing risks can be as easy as providing insights into driver behavior and instant crash alerts,” said Michael Burdiek, president and chief executive officer of CalAmp. “CalAmp is committed to developing strategic partnerships with forward-thinking companies, and we look forward to working alongside other TSR members to bring machines, devices, and people together to communicate seamlessly in an effort to improve road safety, ultimately saving lives.”

TSR creates a sustainable impact by:

• Advancing safer companies and fleets by educating drivers and regulators on best practice road safety interventions;
• Accelerating safer cities through emerging technologies and data-based decision making in localities’ road safety management; and
• Expanding the private sector’s engagement in the global road safety community through innovative public-private partnerships.

“Having accurate, timely insight to commercial- and citizen-related road usage helps companies, cities, and other transportation stakeholders understand and improve their safety outcomes,” said David Braunstein, president of TSR.

“With decades of experience in emerging technologies and machine to machine communications, CalAmp will be a valuable contributor to the coalition’s efforts in supporting safer companies and safer cities to invest in evidence-based solutions.”

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WISeKey expects total identified 5-year revenues from the automobile manufacturer industry to be in excess of CHF 30 Million from which the company is already expecting to generate approximately CHF 2.5 Million and CHF 7.0 Million in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

WISeKey International Holding, a leading Swiss cybersecurity and IoT company, announced today that it is delivering a strategic contract for a leading European automobile manufacturer cementing its role in the Connected Car sector.

The agreement includes the integration of WISeKey IoT and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) in the manufacturer’s connected car solutions allowing them to authenticate legitimate car components and enabling owners to securely interact with the car’s smart features.

BI Intelligence expects 94 million connected cars to be sold in 2021, and for 82% of all cars sold during that year to be connected. This represents a compound annual growth rate of 35% from 21 million connected cars in 2016.

Virtually all new cars on the market today include electronic technologies that could pose vulnerabilities to hacking or privacy intrusions if data security is not addressed. For example, smart cars without cybersecurity protection technology could allow hackers to gain remote access by exploiting vulnerabilities in their ecosystem of connected components and online services. As the number of cars connected to the Internet is growing quickly (to over a quarter of a billion by year 2020, as estimated by Gartner), smart car manufactures are working to identify and reduce potential hacking vulnerabilities in their vehicles.

In recent years, the security protections of smart cars have expanded using proven IoT technologies. There is increased use of “secure element” chips provided by WISeKey Semiconductor to authenticate individual car components within the vehicle itself and to the online services it interacts with, and to ensure that only legitimate software is installed in the car. Digital certificates provided by WISeKey QuoVadis ensure that only authorized users have access to the connected car functions and encrypt data for to make it tamperproof and private.

“As cars continue to evolve, essentially becoming motorized computers, they are vulnerable to the very same threats and attacks as home computers, laptops and smartphones.”

“Unless appropriate cybersecurity measures are implemented, hackers can remotely access the vehicle’s computer system, manipulate the brakes, engine, and transmission. Our technology is designed to help verify legitimate car systems, protect the data they create and avoid malicious hacking,” said Carlos Moreira, CEO WISeKey.

WISeKey has a strong presence in the IoT market with both its widely-used VaultIC chips and PKI across a variety of industries ranging from luxury products to telecommunications hardware to the automotive sector. WISeKey expects total identified 5-year revenues from the automobile manufacturer industry to be in excess of CHF 30 Million from which the company is already expecting to generate approximately CHF 2.5 Million and CHF 7.0 Million in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

WISeKey’s solutions reduce potential security threats by:

• Providing IoT “secure element” chips – essentially a small smartcard – from WISeKey Semiconductor that can be embedded into different components of the car to enhance the security of their electronic functions.
• Providing highly-scalable and reliable PKI from WISeKey and QuoVadis to create the electronic credentials that assert the identity of device or authorized users and enable encryption to protect data or software integrity. These PKI solutions are highly adaptable to both the “lightweight” technology needs of IoT and the changing attributes of IoT devices over time after the vehicle has left the car factory.
• In short, the WISeKey IoT solutions provide a benefit both to the manufacturer in cost-effectively protecting the security of car components and their related online services, and for drivers in securing the massive of data produced by smart cars in daily use – which includes significant detail on the driver’s personal behavior and movements, similar to that produced by a smartphone.

The post WISeKey Wins Contract with Leading Automobile Maker to Secure Connected Cars appeared first on IoT Business News.

AirPrime® embedded modules and AirVantage® IoT Platform provide automotive-grade cellular connectivity and service delivery for the first production cars in Russia to carry the emergency ERA-GLONASS system.

Sierra Wireless today announced that Itelma, a manufacturer and distributor of automotive equipment, has selected Sierra Wireless’ family of smart automotive modules and cloud-based AirVantage® IoT Platform to enable cellular connectivity and service delivery for its emergency response ERA-GLONASS units supplied to the Russian automotive market.

The connected car technology is being installed in AvtoVAZ’s LADA vehicles, the first production cars in Russia to carry the emergency system.

“Sierra Wireless provides us with a leading-edge automotive connectivity solution that is reliable and scales easily,” said Alexander Sokolov, Deputy Director of Development at Itelma.

“They are providing us with a fully automotive-grade module, as well as a device and connectivity management platform. This complete solution supports our vision of developing innovative technologies for connected cars and services in the future.”

Utilizing Sierra Wireless smart automotive modules connected to the Sierra Wireless platform, the Itelma ERA-GLONASS emergency response unit automatically locates a vehicle and transmits SOS signals through mobile networks to responder services during an emergency. In the event of an accident, information transmitted contains the exact coordinates, time and severity of the accident, as well as the vehicle registration number. The driver can also send a signal by clicking the appropriate button. ERA-GLONASS functionality is a mandatory requirement for all new type approved vehicles from 2015 and all cars from 2017 in Russia. The Russian system is harmonized with the European emergency system (eCall), which is set to launch in 2018.

The entire deployment is remotely managed through the Sierra Wireless AirVantage IoT Platform, allowing SIMs to be monitored and managed, and device firmware to be updated over-the-air, ensuring a cost-effective solution. This also allows Russian automobile manufacturers to remotely manage their fleet from factory to dealership.

“Our smart automotive modules and cloud-based AirVantage IoT Platform provide an advanced automotive solution for next-generation vehicles,” said Dan Schieler, Senior Vice President of OEM Solutions for Sierra Wireless. “We are pleased to collaborate with Itelma and look forward to working closely with them on their expanding cellular connectivity requirements.”

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AirPrime® AR modules provide automotive-grade cellular connectivity for PATEO’s telematics units installed in Geely’s connected cars.

Sierra Wireless today announced that PATEO has selected Sierra Wireless AirPrime® AR Series modules to enable cellular connectivity for its telematics units being installed in automotive vehicles for the China market.

The automotive-grade AR Series embedded modules began shipping to PATEO in Q1 2016, and the first deployment of their telematics units is in Geely’s vehicle platforms.

“Sierra Wireless provides us with a leading-edge automotive connectivity solution that is easily scalable across 2G, 3G, and 4G technologies,” said Chris Ying, VP of PATEO Connected Cars.

“The AR Series provides us with a full automotive-grade module and an open-source embedded platform for application services, offering a complete solution to support our vision to develop innovative technology for connected cars in the future.”

Based in Shanghai, PATEO is a leading provider of products and services for connected cars in China, specializing in telematics and infotainment systems. It has captured a significant market share in self-owned, joint venture and luxury brand markets in China. Geely is a leading Chinese automotive company with more than 30 vehicle models, a strong dealer presence in China, and global sales and service in more than 40 countries. Geely also owns the Swedish passenger car maker Volvo Car Group, which it acquired in 2010.

“The AR Series modules with the Legato embedded software application platform provides an advanced automotive solution for next-generation vehicles,” said Dan Schieler, SVP & GM of OEM Solutions for Sierra Wireless. “We are pleased to collaborate with PATEO and look forward to working closely with them on their cellular connectivity requirements.”

The Sierra Wireless AR Series embedded modules are integrated with Legato software, a Linux-based embedded platform designed to simplify application development and enable automotive OEMs to develop new connected car services. In addition to the flexible hardware design, the AirPrime AR Series firmware is designed to be future-proof as well. Using Sierra Wireless’ cloud-based platform, customers can easily upgrade device firmware over-the-air for thousands or even millions of deployed devices at a time.

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New Anomaly Detection for Automotive Offering Expands Company’s IoT Portfolio.

Symantec Corp., the global leader in cybersecurity, today introduced Symantec Anomaly Detection for Automotive to protect against zero-day attacks and never-before-seen issues facing modern connected vehicles.

Bringing Symantec’s extensive security and sophisticated analytics expertise across complex networks to the vehicle, Anomaly Detection for Automotive provides the crucial ability to identify issues for early remediation.

Connected cars offer drivers conveniences such as navigation, remote roadside assistance and mobile internet hot spots. There will be 220 million connected cars on the road in 2020, according to Gartner.¹ While new technologies promise to enhance the driving experience, these advancements also create avenues of attack for hackers that can endanger drivers and passengers.

Symantec Anomaly Detection for Automotive uses machine learning to provide passive in-vehicle security analytics that monitor all Controller Area Network (CAN) bus traffic without disrupting vehicle operations, learn what normal behavior is and flag anomalous activity that may indicate an attack. The solution works with virtually any automotive make and model.

“The Internet of Things contains many different areas, but connected automobiles will radically alter transportation and mobile communications,” said Christian Christiansen, IDC VP of Security Products. “As connected automobiles become the norm, security issues have already drawn attention. Driven by opportunity, manufacturers and their suppliers will partner with cybersecurity vendors on securing connected cars as they would with any other networked endpoints such as mobile devices and laptops.”

“Keeping security top of mind will not only help ensure the safety of drivers and passengers but also build trust in the car manufactures and the overall Internet of Things ecosystem.”

Key benefits of Symantec Anomaly Detection for Automotive include:

• Learning the vehicle’s behavior in a deeper, more precise way, enabling automakers to see previously unseen attacks.
• Automatically prioritizing incidents based on perceived criticality and risk.
• Automatically detecting anomalies without requiring manufacturers to set rules or create policies.
• Using minimal memory and CPU power with an analytics solution built from the ground up for vehicles.

Symantec Anomaly Detection for Automotive is the latest example of Symantec’s investment in the industry’s most comprehensive IoT security solution. Symantec recently announced that the company is securing more than 1 billion IoT devices, from cars to smart meters to industrial control systems. This is Symantec’s fourth solution designed to serve the auto industry, in addition to Symantec Embedded Security: Critical System Protection, Code Signing, and Managed Public Key Infrastructure.

“Automotive security threats have gone from theory to reality,” said Shankar Somasundaram, senior director of product management and engineering at Symantec. “Symantec is bringing the world’s most comprehensive portfolio of security technologies to the car. The infrastructure and technology that already helps protect billions of devices and trillions of dollars now protects the car. We’re building long-term comprehensive security all while delivering ground breaking protection for cars today.”

Symantec will demo its Anomaly Detection for Automotive solution at the TU-Automotive event this week in Detroit at booth C80 and will also participate in a panel entitled, “Automotive Connectivity: Risky Business or Savior?”

Availability

Symantec Anomaly Detection for Automotive is now available in most markets worldwide.

The post Symantec Launches New IoT Solution to Help Carmakers Protect Against Zero Day Attacks appeared first on IoT Business News.

Automakers can now offer car owners seamless cloud-based embedded software maintenance and the latest capability upgrades over vehicle’s entire lifecycle.

Sierra Wireless and Movimento today announced a partnership to provide automotive OEMs with an integrated solution to streamline vehicle software installation and updates.

Sierra Wireless’s device-to-cloud solution and Movimento’s Over the Air (OTA) technology together provide the industry’s first commercially available cloud-based platform to maintain connected cars.

“Cars are becoming part of our connected life, and we expect that they are not only up to date, secure and reliable, but we also want access to the latest features,” said Philippe Guillemette, Chief Technology Officer, Sierra Wireless. “The solution that we’ve created with Movimento will enable automotive manufacturers to deliver these complex software requirements seamlessly across a vehicle’s entire lifecycle.”

All vehicles have numerous software programs running on a network of Electronic Control Units (ECUs) that need to be individually managed and maintained. The Sierra Wireless-Movimento solution allows automotive OEMs to update software for all ECUs simultaneously over-the-air. When an automaker needs to upgrade a vehicle’s systems, it’s now as simple as logging into the dashboard over a secure network and selecting the appropriate update campaign.

According to data collected by J.D. Power through its SafetyIQ program, 189 separate software recalls have been issued in the past five years, impacting more than 13 million vehicles. With the Sierra Wireless-Movimento solution, these recalls could be easily and efficiently resolved over-the-air, and without missing any vehicles.

“Our combined solution removes all of the complexity for auto OEMs and Tier One vendors who supply the connected car industry,” said Mahbubul Alam, CTO/CMO, Movimento.

“Rather than worrying about maintaining all the different software and firmware versions, we created a centralized solution from car to cloud. You don’t have to provision every ECU with a dedicated software agent, which reduces CPU and memory requirements, along with overall costs.”

Movimento’s software update client runs on the Legato Linux Embedded Application Framework available on Sierra Wireless 4G automotive modules. Through the Sierra Wireless AirVantage cloud platform, the Movimento solution enables automakers to seamlessly upgrade all vehicle software.

“IHS is forecasting that most automakers will introduce an OTA software capability in their cars in the next three to five years,” said Sam Lucero, Senior Principal Analyst, IHS. “Unified platforms, such as this introduction from Sierra Wireless and Movimento, are yet another harbinger of adoption of OTA in the automotive industry.”

The post Sierra Wireless and Movimento Accelerate Adoption of Over-the-Air Vehicle Software Management appeared first on IoT Business News.

The car is well on its way to becoming the most sophisticated mobile device in the Internet of Things (IoT).

Linked to the cloud by way of wireless technologies, smart chips, onboard computers and mobile apps, connected vehicles are driving new business models and disrupting old ones. By 2020, there will be a quarter billion connected vehicles on the road, enabling new in-vehicle services and automated driving capabilities, according to Gartner, Inc.

Over the coming years, social and behavioral changes will continue to redefine the basis on which people decide to buy a car, with vehicle technology becoming relatively less important, and in-car digital services – and the convenience of the selection process – playing a growing role in consumers’ choice of vehicle.

As connected vehicle capabilities continue to evolve and roll out, Quectel thinks connected car developments continue to center on the seven following areas:

1. Telematics. Vehicle telematics encompass a wide range of computing and communications services located within a car. They focus mainly on safety, security and convenience, and include features as varied as stolen vehicle recovery, emergency calls, concierge services, remote door unlocking and remote diagnostics. Most in-car telematics solutions are managed by service providers through call centers.

2. Advanced driver assistance systems (ADASs). These services focus primarily on accident avoidance and driving efficiency, and do not always require internet connectivity. However, more recent ADAS innovations are increasingly leveraging cloud connectivity to augment the information gathered from embedded onboard systems. Falling prices are boosting adoption, and future services will focus on autonomous driving capabilities.

3. Mobility services. These solutions collect vehicle-specific data through various technologies – positioning technology, wireless communication modules, vehicle sensors and mobile device integration – and then leverage it by linking to an internet-based application via mobile connectivity. Mobile services include vehicle access as a service, and usage and mileage-based services. The most current mobility services are operated by non-automotive vendors, but this may change as OEMs extend their offerings.

4. Infotainment. This category includes information services— like navigation, traffic services, weather and mobile apps, and email—and also entertainment. Infotainment features can be offered either via technology embedded in the vehicle or via device-to-vehicle integration, using consumers’ separate mobile devices as a hub for accessing internetbased content. These offerings focus strongly on ease of use and safety-related services. To offer infotainment services, OEMs generally collaborate with non-automotive vendors.

5. Well-being. Optimization of the driver’s health and competence. The growing group of affluent older drivers will pay for technologies that monitor their well-being while driving. There is significant potential to prevent accidents and save lives with systems that detect conditions that impair driving abilities. Examples include electronic alerts that detect or mitigate fatigue, and other forms of individual assistance.

6. Home integration. Links to homes, offices, and other buildings. As the Internet of Things connects more household appliances and systems to the Web, consumers are embracing home automation, which in turn will drive demand for integration of these systems with the car. Examples include the integration of the automobile into home alarms or energy monitoring systems.

7. Autonomous driving. Operation of the vehicle without a human driver at the controls, existing only on a partial basis. Examples include self-parking cars, motorway assistance, and the transportation of goods by trucks on well-delineated routes.

Autonomous driving is the fastest-growing connected car feature. Many technologies are developing faster than expected. There is strong demand in China. At present, 10 Automakers and Tech Firms are esearching Self-Driving Cars. That is Tesla, Google& Ford, China’s Baidu, Toyota, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Honda, Volkswagen, and Apple. Quectel’s point of view is that it is a great opportunity for auto makers and also a long journey for fully aumomation since it faces the chanlleages of unclear legal and regulatory frameworks and liability issues.

But today, as modern automobiles have evolved to moving machines bristling with sensors, software, processors and networks, future predictions are all about technology, cars will be much more personalized in 2016, thanks to algorithms and context-aware software.

• The Birth Of Algorithm-based Everything
  Intelligent technology is the driver of personalization, but this is just one aspect of how smart software will move into the vehicle world. Year 2016 will see the start of algorithm-driven businesses in which companies will focus on offering flexibility and personalization in all aspects of their services.

  In automotive insurance, as an example, machine learning algorithms will predict insurance premium based on an individual’s driving abilities and behavior as well as the driving conditions for the area.

• Ethernet Reaches The Car
  Having a single network — the Ethernet — in the car will be a big disruptor. To begin with, it will be applied in areas like infotainment audio and video, highly impacting the content available in the car. But the real significance is down the road a bit.
  Imagine the benefits of moving from one megabit to gigabits of network speed in the vehicle. Cars need speed to handle capabilities like automatic braking in case of hazards and other features, and looking further, this is a must-have technology for the semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles that with collect and process data from a large array of radars, cameras and other sensors.

• The Car Will Retort
  In 2016, not only will car receive software updates over the air (OTA) like mobile phone in order to e.g. improve fuel efficiency through the latest and greatest releases, it will also be able to share information about user patterns and driving. This data will start going back to the cloud and give car manufacturers and app makers a world of information and the drivers a superior driving and owning experience.

Connected cars are the leading edge of disruptive technology that’s changing not only the automobile, but the nature of the automotive industry. As connectivity paves the way for autonomous driving, digital content and services have become the industry’s primary source of growth. These services create new opportunities for auto makers, but also for technology companies such as Google and Apple. To succeed, auto makers must not only shift more investments to digital content, but also change their business models, build new capabilities, and drive cultural change through their organizations. More fundamentally, OEMs oriented to their traditional role as product manufacturers must embrace a new identity as service providers. Those that can make this shift — while providing the security assurances consumers demand — will flourish in the digital era.

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iBasis, a KPN company, and Cubic Telecom, a global connectivity platform provider, have implemented an LTE Roaming solution that uses iBasis’ global LTE footprint, hosted Diameter Signaling service and custom development to enable Cubic’s intelligent Multi-IMSI solution for connected cars and other future IoT/M2M applications.

Cubic sought a partner with global LTE roaming coverage that could deliver a solution supporting their embedded connectivity platform in a very short time. iBasis met the challenge with a cost-effective and operationally efficient solution that utilizes hosted Diameter Routing Agents (DRA) to enable Cubic Telecom to offer seamless 4G/LTE connectivity throughout Europe.

Cubic Telecom, which recently announced a partnership with Audi to deliver high-speed connectivity for Audi connect® infotainment services to drivers across Europe, is at the heart of a new digital solutions ecosystem. According to Machina Research, the total number of M2M connections will grow from 5 billion in 2014 to 27 billion in 2024. Cellular connections will grow from 256 million at the end of 2014 to 2.2 billion by 2024, the majority of which will be LTE, and over 50% will be in the ‘Connected Car’ sector.

“It was critical for us to find a responsive and innovative partner who can help us deliver this new generation of connectivity and digital services efficiently and reliably,” said James Denis, Network Director of Cubic Telecom. “iBasis understood our unique needs and deployed a robust, customized solution very quickly, including a sophisticated analytics tool that helps us ensure high quality of service to end-users.”

iBasis CEO Feddo Hazewindus, said:

“Cubic is empowering an exciting new generation of digital services for connected cars and other IoT and M2M applications. We are very pleased to partner with them to deliver their vision seamlessly and globally.”

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Ford and AT&T are bringing high-speed connectivity and an even better owner experience to customers this year – with plans to connect more than 10 million customers to Ford SYNC® Connect within the next five years.

SYNC Connect, Ford’s new high-speed connectivity technology, adds levels of convenience to SYNC, the industry-leading in-car entertainment and communications system. Ford is introducing SYNC Connect in the United States and Canada this spring in the new Escape.

“Vehicle owners want the convenience that comes with being connected at home and on the go,” said Raj Nair, Ford executive vice president, Global Product Development and chief technical officer.

“With SYNC Connect, we are able to provide features and services that make the car an even more seamless part of our customers’ connected lifestyles.”

With Ford SYNC Connect, Ford vehicle owners can:

• Remotely lock and unlock doors from anywhere
• Use the built-in GPS system to locate their parked vehicle on a map
• Remotely start the vehicle or schedule a start time
• View vehicle information, including fuel and battery level and tire pressure readings
• SYNC Connect plays a key role in Ford’s connectivity strategy as part of Ford Smart Mobility, the plan to take Ford to the next level in connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, the customer experience, and data and analytics.

SYNC Connect debuts this spring on the new Ford Escape. After the initial rollout in North America, SYNC Connect is launching in global markets, adding another 10 million connected vehicles by 2020.

“Connected car services are an important feature to consumers,” said Chris Penrose, senior vice president, Internet of Things, AT&T Mobility. “We’re thrilled to expand our relationship with Ford to deliver an enhanced connected experience to more Ford drivers.”

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