4 ms·

Killswitches: the killer app. Coming soon to a self-driving car near you.

• snuxoll 10y ago
  Every GM vehicle made in the past few years has a killswitch via OnStar, it's an advertised feature that law enforcement can use it to remotely disable a vehicle (even in motion) if it reported stolen, nothing stopping them from using it for more nefarious purposes.
  • marssaxman 10y ago
    Wow, that makes OnStar sound even creepier than it already did. How hard is it to rip the system out?
    • snuxoll 10y ago
      Depends on the model, seems the common 'fix' is to find and remove the cellular radio module or a fuse - but who knows how long (or even on what models) this will continue to be possible, after all, it defeats the purpose of this 'feature' if it can be easily disabled. This expands beyond GM as well, Toyota has "Safety Connect" now (though it's thankfully a purchasable option last I checked, I don't have a Toyota vehicle new enough to have it) and even if your car doesn't have a similar feature most newer vehicles have telematics devices connected directly to the CANBUS - which, due to any lack of authentication can be used to do anything to your car if there is either a security vulnerability or a adversary capable of compelling the manufacturer to use it against you. Modern vehicles really are scary things to be in if you are worried about potential state-level adversaries as part of your threat model, vehicle manufacturers are already horrible at writing software for ECU's and attaching cellular modems directly to a network without any kind of authentication or authorization should scare the shit out of anyone.