As vehicles become increasingly connected and dependent on software security needs to be the top priority for car manufacturers.

Increasingly connected vehicles, reliant on automation and digital synergy, need appropriate security to match their growing production.

Dependency on software to power vehicle systems and features, cyber security has become a threat to connected vehicles and the introduction of new driving assistance, vehicle-to-vehicle communication, and autonomous driving capabilities.

“Given the high priority of vehicle security we believe threat detection must be a mandatory component of any connected vehicle solution, and Airbiquity is delighted to partner with HARMAN to jointly leverage our technology assets and meet this critical need,” said Kamyar Moinzadeh, president and CEO of Airbiquity.

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HARMAN’s intrusion detection and prevention system inside the vehicle will combine with Airbiquity’s cloud-based Choreo service delivery platform and software and data management solution, to produce an industry-first.

The two companies are spearheading this new market technology with the aim the standardising it as a benchmark of safety and security within the automotive ecosystem.

HARMAN’s embedded ECUSHIELD software provides continuous real-time security threat monitoring and identification for internal vehicle networks, while detecting security intrusions locally.

Once any intrusion is logged, Airbiquity’s Choreo platform and software & data management solution collects the information from the vehicle, aggregates it in the cloud, and automates alerts and reports so automotive customers can quickly assess and execute security-centric actions, including the secure transmission and installation of vehicle software updates from the cloud to mitigate future threats and restore impacted systems and components.

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“Car hacking is a very real threat that will continue to increase as we move towards greater connectivity and autonomous vehicles, with more and more new technologies becoming part of the Internet of Things,” said Saar Dickman, vice president, automotive cyber security at HARMAN.

“Following years of research in developing ECUSHIELD, we’re delighted to be working with Airbiquity, a likeminded partner, to offer the industry the first end-to-end IDS solution that combines our company’s embedded capabilities with Airbiquity’s comprehensive back-end software and data management solution. Our mutual goal is to help our customers in ensuring vehicles are safe and secure.”