• Bandeau presse

Focus on Autonomous Vehicles

April 2017 News

Focus on Autonomous Vehicles

Smart vehicles use increasingly complex electronic systems, which execute around 100 million lines of computer code. This development responds to the demand for security, comfort, maintenance and services... more and more services. Why? Because today, density and continuity are the keywords of digital life, with permanent connectivity for vehicles and in vehicles. Car manufacturers are investing in identifying and managing these risks.

ACTIA's involvement in smart vehicles is based on its expertise in designing and producing on-board telematics platforms and electronic diagnostics solutions. Thus, over a million telematics units have been produced by the group's factories over the last two years, and its VCI (Vehicle Communication Interface) expertise is based on 30 years of diagnostics partnership with major automobile manufacturers.

With recognised expertise in the cyber security of in-vehicle systems, ACTIA helps to draft European and global regulatory standards which are applicable in the short term. Having contributed to the recommendations of the European Union Agency For Network And Information Security (ENISA), which lay down the major standards for cyber security and resilience of smart cars (https://www.enisa.europa.eu/news/enisa-news/securing-smart-cars-today-for-safer-autonomous-cars-tomorrow), ACTIA is now working alongside French car manufacturers and equipment suppliers (PSA, Renault, Valeo, etc.) to define the ISO-SAE standard stipulating the engineering activities required to protect electronic systems in vehicles against all cyber security threats, throughout their life cycle. The provisional version of this standard ("ISO Committee Draft") is expected in early 2018.

"We are focusing on autonomous vehicles. We need to be ready to meet the needs of our customers and offer products which provide a high level of security and comply with future standards. Helping to define these standards allows us to put them into practice in real time when designing our products." explains Jacques Kunegel, Product Security Manager for the ACTIA Group.

Although no cyber attacks have been recorded to date, the threat must be taken seriously. The public authorities also urgently need to legislate, for public safety reasons. The authorities require international standards which are applicable to the global automotive industry, as soon as possible. A whole cultural shift must be made, with adaptation in real time. This security issue concerns us all, because cars are not like any other connected object. By contributing its expertise to these international projects, ACTIA is helping to address this global security issue, because the group has been and still is a major forerunner in the environment and anti-pollution domain.

Connected car mobility concept