ACEA welcomes European efforts on vehicle data security

06 June 2018

As part of a package of measures aiming to make the continent a leading power in mobility, the European Commission has announced its latest plans for connected and autonomous vehicles.

Cars and other vehicles are increasingly equipped with driver assistance systems, and fully autonomous vehicles are just around the corner. The Commission is proposing a strategy looking at a new level of cooperation between road users, which could potentially bring enormous benefits to the mobility system as a whole.

Transport will be safer, cleaner, cheaper and more accessible to the elderly and people with reduced mobility. In addition, the Commission is proposing to establish a fully digital environment for information exchange in freight transport. This will cut red tape and facilitate digital information flows for logistic operations.

The Commission will offer support in 2018 for testing the use of 5G connectivity to enable highly automated driving functions and new mobility services with a budget totalling €50 million. Moreover, additional funds of up to €450 million are made available today under the Connecting Europe Facility to foster the digitalisation of transport.

Commissioner for Transport, Violeta Bulc said: ‘Over the past year, this Commission has put forward initiatives addressing the challenges of today and paving the way for the mobility of tomorrow. Today’s measures constitute a final and important push so that Europeans can benefit from safe, clean and smart transport. I am inviting the Member States and the Parliament to live up to our level of ambition.’

The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has said it is pleased to see that the European Commission is giving priority to ensuring safe and secure access to vehicle data in the third EU Mobility Package that was presented today.

In its new Communication ′On the Road to Automated Mobility’, the Commission mentions the off-board model for sharing ′in-vehicle data on so-called extended vehicle data platform servers’ which is currently already being ′implemented by several vehicle manufacturers’.

ACEA agrees with the Commission that the right approach to data access must ensure ′safety and cybersecurity, in full compliance with the [″¦] protection of personal data.’ Our industry is convinced that this can only be achieved if relevant vehicle data are communicated to an off-board facility, from where service providers can access the data. This approach minimises safety and security risks in a way which no other method of access to vehicle data can accomplish.

ACEA Secretary General, Erik Jonnaert, cautioned: ′The safety of drivers and passengers is paramount to us. That is why we need to use this secure off-board model for data sharing.’ Jonnaert: ′Giving third-parties direct and uncontrolled access to data in a moving vehicle is an open door for hackers. How well would you sleep at night with your front door wide open?’

The automobile industry is also committed to making vehicle data available to all service providers under the same conditions. ACEA members are currently working with their partners to ensure that the off-board access model ensures fair and undistorted competition between service providers.