Title: Privacy and the Car of the Future - Considerations for the Connected Vehicle

Abstract:

To date, remote vehicle communications have provided little in the way of privacy. Much information and misinformation has been spread on what the system is and can do, especially within the information security community. The recent field trial in the US of a connected vehicle infrastructure raises the level of concern amongst all who are aware of existing privacy issues.

In this talk I will examine a current system high level design for North American vehicles, conforming to IEEE and SAE standards and used in a recent road test in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. I will consider privacy concerns for each portion of the system, identifying how they may be addressed by current approaches or otherwise considered solutions. I conclude with a discussion of the strategic value in engagement between the privacy community and automotive industry during development efforts and the potential community role in raising privacy as a competitive advantage.

I was contracted to do a privacy audit in July to identify aspects of the technology that would pose threats to users' privacy, as well as offering summaries of methods to partially or completely compromise the system. For this program to be successful, it must be accepted by the public since the benefits are derived from others' broadcasts. Good technologists realize that until the system is close to deployment in the field, none of the details mean that much unless you have real hardware. However, careful early consideration of the overall system design can identify and lead to solutions to information leaks that will compromise the user's ability to control their private information.

Speaker Bio:

Christie Dudley started her career with a BSEE with an emphasis in digital communications from the University of Kansas. A 15 year enterprise network engineer career, largely in finance and manufacturing followed. After deciding to change fields, she started pursuing an old interest in communications security and privacy with a brief internship in hardware security.

Finding entry options limited, she began pursuing the field from a new perspective, enrolling as JD candidate at Santa Clara Law. She now consults for the VII Consortium and several other organizations on privacy issues related to vehicular communications technology while completing her law degree.

Recorded at the 29th Chaos Communication Congress (29c3), 27.12.2012, Hamburg Germany.