War Texting' can let hackers unlock your car through SMS

Just a couple of days back we learnt that Apple’s new battery technology can allow hackers to make laptops explode, thus highlighting how certain unnoticed glitches in technology can prove to be perilous. Today, there is yet another instance with cellular-based automotive roadside assistance services like GM's OnStar and BMW Assist which can be used to remotely unlock cars. Some engineers have worked on means that can let them crack this technology and unlock cars through just SMS and their calling it “War Texting.”

Don Bailey and Mathew Solnik of security company iSEC Partners came up with the demonstration wherein they set up their ad-hoc GSM network and communicated with the in-car system, posing as authorized servers because the proprietary protocol used was not secure enough to keep them at bay. And they accomplished the task of unlocking the car by simply send a message from a laptop to the car’s computer. They’ll be showcasing their findings at the upcoming Black Hat USA conference in Las Vegas.

[Gizmag]

Posted in: Transport