LG and Honeywell demo automotive cybersecurity solution

Honeywell and LG Electronics have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop and demonstrate a unique automotive software technology and infrastructure solution to address threats associated with the increase in vehicle connectivity technology.

The two companies showcased a collaborative cybersecurity solution at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month, and at the recently concluded 2018 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

The collaboration between LG and Honeywell provides automakers a next-generation cybersecurity solution for system communications within the vehicle as well as an increasing amount of external communications via cellular and satellite connectivity.

The two companies are focused on the unserved needs of the auto industry to cover the entire cybersecurity chain from individual gateway protection through threat monitoring of fleets. The solution to be developed by the collaboration will integrate LG's intrusion, detection and protection software (IDPS) technology for securing vehicle hardware from external attacks with Honeywell's IDPS solutions for securing internal vehicle communication and control networks along with its security monitoring and analytics capabilities for security operation centers.

The collaborative solution helps ensure passenger vehicle safety and security by identifying and validating software commands and data generated by the more than 100 million lines of code that govern modern vehicle operation. LG's electrical gateways and security modules, telematics control unit (TCU), and electronic control unit (ECU) can be an effective toolset for detecting and reporting anomalies preceding a mechanical failure or intentional hack of the vehicle. Honeywell's software detects anomalies and protects in-vehicle network traffic when the global security operation centers receive captured data transmitted in either real-time or via a scheduled download. These security centers monitor large fleets to provide analytics coupled with an understanding of underlying issues to provide effective remediation options to the automaker.

"LG Electronics has recognized the importance of automotive cybersecurity as cars are increasingly connected to external networks to provide rich services to end users. In order to provide secure products to our OEM customers, we have been heavily investing on cybersecurity of both software and hardware and offering highly secure products to our OEMs," said Lee Woo-jong, president of the Vehicle Components Company of LG Electronics. "We have experience in providing various automotive security solutions for ECU/TCU and external network protection. By integrating Honeywell's security software with LGE's security solutions, we expect to provide a next-generation cybersecurity solution that protects the entire vehicle from external and internal networks as well as the ECU/TCU system and application layers."

"There are more than a dozen clearly defined attack surfaces that can provide points of entry for hacking into a passenger vehicle, and the number is growing fast," said Olivier Rabiller, Honeywell Transportation Systems president and CEO. "We are supporting our OEM customers with our differentiated software platform to address the cybersecurity challenge inherent to connected and autonomous vehicle development. We are developing a network of partners and collaborating specifically with LGE to ease the integration work for our customers and provide a comprehensive cybersecurity solution."