Hackers crack the car

In car navigation and infotainment systems can deeply improve the driving experience, but they can also open up your car to security issues that you might never have imagined. Case in point: In July, security researchers Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek managed to control a Jeep Cherokee s acceleration and braking among other things via the Internet. The pair exploited a vulnerability in the Jeep s Uconnect in dash infotainment system, and used a smartphone to remotely brake the car while it was being driven. The hack took Miller and Valasek three years of work to pull off. The fact that someone could take control of a car through a hole in the infotainment system is worrisome, though, and the hack was serious enough that Fiat Chrysler recalled 1.4 million vulnerable vehicles.