March 18, 2016—The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in a bulletin Thursday warned that motor vehicles are “increasingly vulnerable” to hacking, according to a report from Reuters.
"The FBI and NHTSA are warning the general public and manufacturers—of vehicles, vehicle components, and aftermarket devices—to maintain awareness of potential issues and cybersecurity threats related to connected vehicle technologies in modern vehicles," the agencies said in the bulletin.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) issued an unprecedented recall of 1.4 million U.S. vehicles in July 2015 to install software after a Wired magazine report raised concerns of hacking, including steering, transmission and brakes. BMW announced in January 2015 that it had fixed a flaw that made 2.2 million vehicles vulnerable to hacking.
"While not all hacking incidents may result in a risk to safety -- such as an attacker taking control of a vehicle -- it is important that consumers take appropriate steps to minimize risk," the bulletin said.
