GM Performs Stealth Update To Fix Security Bug In OnStar

An anonymous reader writes: Back in 2010, long before the Jeep Cherokee thing, some university researchers demonstrated remote car takeover via cellular (old story here). A new Wired article reveals that this was actually a complete exploit of the OnStar system (and was the same one used in that 60 Minutes car hacking episode last year). Moreover, these cars stayed vulnerable for years -- until 2014, when GM created a remote update capability and secretly started pushing updates to all the affected cars.

Comments

alternative updates are available.

[nimbius]

As I graduated last year and assumed my engineering role at mcdonalds (ketchup extrusion/mustard analytics) I became aware of this 2010 exploit and, in keeping with slashdots hacker culture, created my own workaround in case my vehicle were to make the list of coveted hackable hardware.

my 2001 crown victoria police interceptor has been modified slightly to emit a protective haze of burnt oil to stealthfully evade hackers. Whats more, the suspension has been recalibrated to bob and duck at the slightest bump, and shake violently at speeds above 40 miles per hour in an attempt to elude hackers signals. Finally, I use crippling student debt technology to ensure that flipping on my dome light and barking orders to OnStar does virtually nothing to the vehicle. For added protection, you can put the car into 'stealth mode' if you have an arts degree by avoiding oil changes and fuel in exchange for more ramen this month.