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Danish officials are looking into ways to resolve a security vulnerability in hundreds of electric buses manufactured in China, which could be turned off remotely.

Transport authorities found that Yutong, a Chinese company, had remote access to bus control systems for software updates and diagnostics. Norwegian officials cautioned that this access might be misused while the buses are in service.

Worried about potential security issues, Norway’s public transport agency Ruter conducted trials of two electric buses separately.

Bernt Reitan Jenssen, CEO of Ruter, stated: “The tests identified risks that we are now addressing. National and local authorities have been notified and need to support with further actions at the national level.”

Authorities discovered that taking out the SIM cards from the buses could block remote access, but this would also cut off the vehicles from other systems. Ruter mentioned that they will enhance security protocols for upcoming acquisitions. Jenssen noted that the company needs to take action before launching new bus models that could be “more interconnected and more challenging to protect.”

In Denmark, Movia, the nation’s leading public transportation provider, manages 469 electric buses from China, with 262 of them manufactured by Yutong.

The chief operating officer of Movia, Jeppe Gaard, stated that he found out last week that “electric buses, similar to electric cars, can be remotely disabled if their software systems have internet connectivity.” He further noted: “This is not an issue specific to Chinese-made buses. It is a concern for all kinds of vehicles and devices equipped with Chinese electronics.”

As per Gaard, Denmark’s civil protection and emergency management authority stated that it has not observed any instances of buses being disabled. Nevertheless, it cautioned that the internet-enabled systems in these vehicles, such as cameras, microphones, and GPS, could introduce weaknesses that might be taken advantage of.

Yutong mentioned that it “adheres strictly to the relevant laws, regulations, and industry guidelines in the regions where its vehicles are deployed.” The company noted that data collected from its buses based in the EU is kept at an Amazon Web Services (AWS) data center located in Frankfurt.

A representative from Yutong stated: “This information is exclusively utilized for vehicle maintenance, enhancement, and improvement to fulfill customers’ post-purchase service requirements. The data is secured through storage encryption and access control protocols. No individual is permitted to access or view this data without the customer’s permission. Yutong strictly adheres to the EU’s data protection laws and regulations.”

Thomas Rohden, head of the Danish China-Critical Society and a Social Liberal party representative in the region, stated that Denmark has been “too slow” in tackling its dependence on Chinese companies.

This presents a significant challenge. We should not rely so heavily on a nation with values and principles that differ greatly from those of Denmark,” Rohden stated. He mentioned that as Denmark strives to enhance its resilience in response to worries about hybrid attacks from Russia, “it is not resilient to be entirely dependent on China.

The Norwegian transportation ministry chose not to provide a statement.

(The Guardian UK)

FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE