Cyber Threats
Enabling insurers to better understand connected vehicle cyber risk
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There are more lines of code in some connected cars today than there are in large passenger aircraft. That’s how far cars have evolved from a simple transportation mechanism to sophisticated mobile computer systems. As we accelerate the journey to fully autonomous vehicles, insurers are scrambling to understand the implications.
Fortunately, they have an ally in VicOne: Trend Micro’s recently launched subsidiary which specialises in future-ready vehicle cyber-protection. It’s time to understand where the opportunities and risks lie in the connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) industry.
Opportunity and risk
Although timelines have been pushed out slightly, an autonomous vehicle future is coming. For insurers it could be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, there are predicted to be fewer accidents, meaning reduced pricing for insurance policies. On the other, ownership of vehicles, or liability for them, may shift from drivers to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and other players. That would reduce the number of individual policies and overall revenues. The fact that there will be fewer payouts for claims is unlikely to make up the shortfall.
However, here’s where the opportunity comes in. While the risk of accidents may go down with CAVs, the increase in technology components embedded everywhere in new vehicles increases the chance of cyber compromise. As these risks become better understood by threat actors, we may start to see mass hacking attacks attempting to unlock cars for theft and/or hijack them for ransom or sabotage, or to steal sensitive personal and corporate data.
The road to safety
Vehicle cyber-insurance therefore offers carriers a potentially sizeable CAV-shaped opportunity. We may not be able to prevent drivers and autonomous systems from making mistakes. But we’ve built a company off the back of years of expertise in connected security.
VicOne can not only help insurance sector partners to better understand and quantify new cyber risks in the connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) industry. We ultimately help to mitigate it. Our current offerings range from Vehicle Security Operations Centre (VSOC) technology to onboard intrusion detection (IDS), and vulnerability scanning and pen testing for the automotive supply chain.
Accenture estimates CAV as a $81bn opportunity for insurers. By reaching out to experts in cyber risk like VicOne, they could expand and accelerate that opportunity considerably.