Hackers and and RF jammers have made the news in recent car crimes, but industry is finally fighting back.

Takeaways:

• Jamming of automotive-based RF and wireless signals is a growing security problem.
• Detection of the jamming frequencies and type is critical. Portable spectrum analyzers come in handy for such tasks, e.g., ShareBrained Tech.
• Intel has just established the “Automotive Security Review Board.”
• NXP has just introduce an long-range, multichannel RF family to mitigate jamming while adding IoT-like features.

While catching up on the latest product announcements in the RF space, one recent press release caught my attention: “Designed for the mid-to-high-end car access market, the (NXP) Mantra family offers very high sensitivity and blocking performance for improved robustness against radio jamming and undisturbed signal reception.”

Is radio jamming and undisturbed signal reception really a big issue in the wireless key entry automotive world? A quick check of technical references available through Google convinced me of the legitimacy of the issue. RF jamming products are readily available on the Internet though most are so poorly written as to confirm the foreign origin of most of the vendors. BTW: The intentional jamming of RF signals is illegal in the US.

RF jammers exist for every type of protocol from GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to mobile phones. Why jam signals from within your car? One reason would be to hide any GPS tracking data that is being sent out about the location of your car’s journey. Cell phone transmissions can also be jammed. Further, such jammers could be used against near-by vehicles depending upon their proximity, the jammer’s transmitter power strength and target receiver architecture (being jammed).

Consider a recent case in Manchester, England, where pranksters/thieves used a simple car lock jammer to prevent owners from locking or unlocking their wireless entry-based vehicles. These same jammers can be part of a strategy to gain access to and even steal the automobiles.

The goal of jamming is to interfere with or prevent the clear reception of RF signals by electronic means. In general, a jammer is designed specifically for targeted receiver architecture. Once the type of jammer is known, then its effects can be mitigated within the receiver.

Detecting the presence of a jammer is key in mitigating the issue since it is very difficult to jam the jammer. Technically savvy car owners can use spectrum analyzers to measure average energy changes in the car fob’s locking spectrum. Detecting a jamming scenario let’s the car owner know that danger is present. A firm called ShareBrained Technologies in Portland, Oregon, offers a small device that allows owners to, “explore radio spectrum wherever you are.”

The growing weakness in automotive security has not gone unnoticed by the semiconductor and electronics industries. Only a few days ago, Intel announced the establishment of the Automotive Security Review Board (ASRB) to, “help mitigate cybersecurity risks associated with connected automobiles while encouraging technological progression and innovation.” The board will encompass security industry talent from across the globe with particular areas of expertise in cyber-physical systems.

As mentioned in the Intel announcement, Gartner predicts that by 2020, the number of connected passenger vehicles on the road in use will be about 150 million; 60% to 75% of them will be capable of consuming, creating and sharing Web-based data. The transition to a more connected world requires that cybersecurity be addressed.

Another sign of industry involvement in automotive cyber-security is found at the New Mobility World – part of the International Motor Show (IAA). The show has many demonstrations focusing on the future of secure connected mobility. For example, the recent NXP announcement of an RF chip family dedicated to advanced long-rang smart car key technology will undoubtedly be a part of the demonstrations. The new Mantra RF portfolio of high-performance transceivers and receivers offers a long-range, two-way RF link that enables bi-directional communication between key fob and car over a distance of several hundred meters. The long-distant connection will allow car owners to check the fuel, battery levels, and latest maintenance data from a distance, among other IoT-like features.

Bio:

By John Blyler, Editorial Director, IoT Embedded Systems