“New vehicle services such as digital keys are spreading, and security must be strengthened”

“Smart key-based technology is vulnerable to the latest attacks… You must use the latest products”
ST, CCC member company activities… Participating in standard specification establishment and review

[Editor's Note] Recently, there has been controversy over the theft of Hyundai and Kia cars in the US, and security issues in the automotive sector have been continuously occurring, such as the hacking of Tesla's digital lock last year. The conclusion has been drawn that the widely used low-frequency-based smart keys are vulnerable to the latest attacks, and Bluetooth is not a perfect countermeasure. STMicroelectronics, a member of the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), which defines digital key standards, introduced its vehicle digital key service at the World Security Expo held at KINTEX from March 29 to 31, drawing a picture of the future of vehicle security.

▲Cho Kyung-min, ST Microelectronics Manager

■ What products (solutions) were exhibited at this World Security Expo?

ST prepared a demo of its 'Secure Digital Key System', a digital key service for vehicles, at the World Security Expo. Products applied to the vehicle digital key demo include STSAFE-V100-CCC (secure element), ST25R (NFC reader), and SPC5 (MCU).

■ What are the key market and industry requirements for digital key systems?

Since digital key itself is a new service, many mobile phone and automobile companies are interested in it. A new standard specification has been created to meet this market demand. ST has prepared a solution that supports the new standard specifications, which is a digital key system including STSAFE-V100-CCC.

■ What are the advantages of ST Digital Key System compared to competitors?

ST is a member of the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), an international standards organization that defines digital key standards and prepares certification programs. As a CCC Core Member, ST plays a major role in defining, creating, and reviewing digital key standards, and is preparing new solutions based on them.

■ There are constant issues related to vehicle security, such as hacking of Tesla's digital lock. What are the security issues that can occur in cars, and how does such hacking occur?

Low-frequency based smart keys are products that have been used for a long time, but the underlying technologies are not keeping up with the latest attacks. As a result, they are being attacked based on widely known vulnerabilities.

Also, the Tesla digital lock hack demonstrated at a recent hacking competition was able to open the car door by exploiting a Bluetooth vulnerability. In order to avoid such attacks and strengthen security, the latest security products with sufficiently high security should be used, and they should satisfy the CCC standard that defines security and compatibility requirements as well as the functions required for new services.

Vulnerabilities can be divided into module level, software level, chip or hardware level, etc. At the chip level, hacking can be done with physical attacks such as lasers. These various attack methods, especially hardware-level vulnerabilities, are well known attack methods in markets such as smart cards, and cars can also be attacked, so ST is preparing solutions for them.

■ I am curious about the outlook for the automotive security (or digital key system) market and ST’s strategy.

New services for automobiles such as digital keys, wireless charging, and EV charging are gradually spreading, and automobile manufacturers are also trying to introduce them. As new services are applied, the necessary security requirements are also increasing. ST is trying to quickly reflect security requirements and lead the market.

We have collected requirements and prepared a vehicle digital key system including STSAFE-V100-CCC, and accordingly, we have all the major solutions required for digital key services, including smartphone NFC and secure element solutions based on ST21 and ST54, and vehicle NFC reader solution ST25R. In addition, we are preparing a solution that integrates various security functions of new services.

■ A word to e4ds readers

I think this exhibition is a great opportunity to show ST's various security solutions and demos of their actual application. We will try to introduce better products at the next exhibition. Thank you.