Automotive

The Challenge: A Rapidly Digitalising Automotive Industry

The digital transformation of the mobility industry has changed the driving experience. Today, it is internet-enabled, from GPS tracking to predictive maintenance. Contemporary vehicles are, quite literally, computers on wheels.

But are automotive industry suppliers, manufacturers, and customers ready to face the challenges that come with digitalisation? 

Vehicles' IT-related complexity has rapidly increased over the past few years, going beyond functional and structural factors to affect connectivity, user and cloud interfaces, software design management, and most importantly, cybersecurity. This ongoing increase in interconnectivity makes new vehicles more vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks, threatening the lives of drivers and their passengers, and jeopardising the continuity of automotive manufacturers’ and suppliers’ businesses. 

Automotive companies that can demonstrate solid cybersecurity measures and ongoing compliance with regulations enjoy a decisive competitive advantage.

We Understand Your Needs

As the digital transformation of the mobility industry continues, you need to proactively address the following issues to stay ahead of the technology curve.

1. Keeping up with evolving industry standards

New technological developments and cyberthreats often advance in lockstep, requiring you to devote crucial resources to managing cybersecurity systems, performing threat analyses and risk assessment, and addressing issues as they crop up. You must also manage and sustain product development according to industry-acknowledged principles, and ensure vehicle data and functions transfer via secured backends, all while fulfilling customer requirements.

2. Compliance with new UN regulations

Taking effect in January 2021, two new UNECE Regulations on Cybersecurity Management Systems (CSMS) R155 and Software Update Management Systems (SUMS) R156 establish precise performance and audit requirements for the automotive industry. Manufacturers and other automotive business interests must comply with these regulations and others in the pipeline, demonstrating the ability to detect and respond to security incidents and ensure driver safety across their vehicle fleet. 

3. Using cybersecurity as competitive advantage

Neglecting cybersecurity results in serious harm to your business. Not only are breaches expensive to repair, they can also generate negative publicity that damages customer trust in your company and products, circumstances that can be fatal to OEMs. Staying ahead of cybersecurity challenges is a decisive competitive advantage. The ability to supply reliable products and secure connected solutions in the face of continuing challenges can establish your reputation in the industry, increasing business opportunities and fostering loyalty among existing customers. 

Why choose TÜV SÜD as your partner for any automotive cybersecurity challenges?

As new software functionalities increase the complexity of vehicle technology, the potential surface area for automotive cyber-attacks increases as well.

TÜV SÜD backs the cybersecurity development for automotive components: offering ISO/SAE 21434 process and product certifications covering the whole automotive supply chain; vehicle type approval services governed by UNECE WP 29 R155 and R156; unbiased advice supported by long-standing industry experience and accreditations.

Our services ensure that appropriate development processes are met over the entire product lifecycle; effective technical security measures are developed in line with relevant cybersecurity regulations, norms, and recommendations; and suitable cybersecurity governance and management are implemented.

From minimising your risk profile to securing access to international standardisation committees, TÜV SÜD can provide the right level of service for your needs, supported by a global network of over 25,000 employees located across more than 1,000 locations.

Cybersecurity Challenges for connected vehicles

Speeding up product development cycles

Product development in the transportation sector can be expensive, with uncertain returns. As many business cases occur over multi-year time horizons, you may be under pressure to prepare for future developments and speed up timetables without compromising the quality of work or return on invested capital.

Building a secure backend

Because of the seamless links between vehicles, networks, and the backend, you must take a broad view when building a robust defence against the high potential risk of cyber-attacks. You must also sweat the finer details, down to securing intellectual property like board documents from breaches.

Strengthening your position as a technology enabler

As evolving technology changes client and supplier relationships, you risk being sidelined as trusted technology enablers. Savvy operators must consolidate their role with customers, starting with proactively planning and mitigating risks along the value chain.

Monitoring security incidents

Connected vehicles exist in both physical space and cyberspace, so a virtual threat can have tremendous impacts on the physical safety of your customers. Industry suppliers and manufacturers must prioritise cybersecurity: establishing processes and strategies to secure your fleet in a dynamic environment.

Providing reliable products and secure connected solutions

To safeguard today's increasingly complex and interconnected vehicles, you must go beyond taking robust security measures. You must also perform rigorous testing on your products: this ensures regulatory compliance with global standards, sorts out defects before they become apparent, and guarantees product safety.

Supporting a reliable production process

You must avoid interrupting or compromising reliable production processes whether optimising manufacturing efficiency or streamlining operations to cut costs. This means proactively handling challenges to the process chain, including downtime and asset failures.

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