Combining Safety and Security in Autonomous Cars Using Blockchain Technologies

Abstract

Modern cars increasingly deploy complex software systems consisting of millions of lines of code that may be subject to cyber attacks. An infamous example is the Jeep hack which allowed an attacker to remotely control the car engine by just exploiting a software bug in the infotainment system. The digitalization and connectivity of modern cars demands a rethinking of car safety as security breaches now affect the driver’s safety. To address the new threat landscape, we develop a novel concept that simultaneously addresses both car safety and security based on the arising blockchain technology, which we mainly exploit to ensure integrity. Previous related work exploited the blockchain for the purpose of forensics, where vehicle data is stored on an externally shared ledger that is accessible by authorized third parties. However, those approaches cannot ensure integrity of information used by the vehicle’s components. In contrast, we propose a blockchain-based architecture based on a shared ledger inside the car, where each ECU can act as a miner and shares its information with other ECUs. The architecture does not only improve the integrity of information for forensics. Some algorithms, e.g. the recognition of dangerous situations, are adaptive and can be improved using for example sensor data. Using our architecture, we ensure that those algorithms only take verified and correct information as input.