The news that NXP Semiconductors has been certified by TÜV SÜD to comply with the new automotive cybersecurity standard ISO/SAE 21434 heralds a new era that may be reminiscent of how the ISO 26262 functional safety standard has reshaped the automotive industry over the past decade. NXP claims to be the first chip manufacturer to be ISO/SAE 21434 compliant.
From July 2022, automakers must comply with the R155 automotive cybersecurity regulation for new model launches in Europe, Japan and South Korea; the new automotive cybersecurity standard is critical for implementing R155 requirements across the automotive supply chain. ISO/SAE 21434 provides a rigorous framework designed to enable organizations to design vehicles that are resistant to a variety of cybersecurity threats.
Figure 1 Like the ISO 26262 functional safety standard, the ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity standard can have a significant impact on the automotive design cycle.
Unlike the ISO 26262 functional safety standard, published in 2011, automotive cybersecurity standards have fallen behind. This, in turn, scares car companies because vehicles have or will have over-the-air (OTA) software updates. More broadly, as hackers have proven time and time again, security breaches can be introduced in hardware and software streams.
Connected vehicles connected to external entities (other vehicles, smart city infrastructure, and the cloud) will inevitably require robust security measures to protect the vehicle, its systems, and the backend network. The ISO/SAE 21434 standard specifies a framework for effectively managing the cybersecurity risks of road vehicle electrical and electronic (E/E) systems.
Figure 2 The ISO/SAE 21434 standard was developed under the heading "Road vehicles - Cybersecurity engineering
As long as there is a connection, there is a risk of cyberattack, but a security breach in a connected car could have serious consequences for consumers and automakers. Hopefully, the arrival of automotive cybersecurity technology will end the horror stories that hackers tell at tech events. However, this was the beginning of a long and fragile journey, which inevitably encountered many design challenges along the way.
