Tesla is considered as one of the brands that are determined to modify human history altogether through its cutting edge state of the art electric vehicles.
Even with a brand like Tesla, however, hackers from all over the world frequently attempt to hack into the company’s software to gain access to other people’s vehicles.
David Colombo & His Insights
One such instance brings a German 19-year-old IT security specialist and hacker named David Colombo to the limelight.
The individual claims to have found his way into Tesla’s software and have gained full Remote Access to not only one but 25 Tesla vehicles. The strangest part is that these vehicles are located in thirteen different countries.
It is worth noting, however, that Colombo stated that he was only able to access the vehicles using third-party software and that it was not Tesla’s fault, but the vehicle owners’, who put their cars at risk of being remotely controlled.
What All Could David Colombo Remotely Control?
Although the hacker has made it clear that he can’t drive the vehicles remotely, there is still a long list of stuff that he can do.
Here is the list of all the actions that Colombo announced through his Tweets that he can perform with the remotely accessed cars.
– Disable Sentry Mode;
– Starting Keyless Driving;
– Opening Doors & Windows;
– See if the driver is present in the vehicle or not;
– Check the vehicle’s exact location;
– Play content on the Tesla screens through YouTube;
– Flashing lights.
Frightening Isn’t It?
Consider how outrageous and dangerous the situation is when someone else can do so much with your vehicle and there is nothing you can do about it, even if you paid a lot of money for a vehicle from Tesla, one of the world’s most well-known brands.
A Ray Of Hope For Tesla Owners
The good news is that Colombo confirmed that the automaker’s team contacted him and is working to resolve the issue, which will prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
Was This The First Time That A Tesla Was Hacked?
No, this is not the first instance in history when a Tesla has been hacked. As a result, Tesla, like many other tech behemoths, has a bounty for individuals who discover a vulnerability and then assist in resolving it.
Earlier as well, a hack dubbed the TBONE by security researchers Ralf-Philipp and Benedikt Schmotzle discovered some remote zero-click vulnerabilities.
This allowed hackers to access the infotainment systems of parked cars through Wi-Fi.
Tesla Software Glitches
The Tesla system has often been found with several glitches and the fact that one of the hackers was even able to deliver the exploit with the help of a drone.
This glitch made it easy to hack the Tesla vehicles without even having to come in personal contact with the vehicle.
Another glitch in Tesla vehicles necessitated the recall of 12,000 vehicles. The glitch generated false forward-collision warnings and applied emergency brakes even when they were not required, endangering the lives of the drivers and others on the road.
Final Verdict
Despite Tesla’s strategies to fix its glitches, new ones appear with each update, and patches are released by the company to counter the attacks.
Even so, the fact that anyone can remotely access critical components of your vehicle is terrifying in itself.
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