Trust and blame in autonomous vehicles: examining the effects of cyber readiness and response in the UK and Japan

An adverse cyber attack, incident or event either on an autonomous vehicle (AV) itself and/or its connected infrastructure could lead to various consequences including but not limited to disruption, reputational damage (e.g. at the company and broader levels), legal implications and financial penalties. Cyber attacks are also likely to undermine trust which is a key factor in the uptake and use of new (transport) technologies and is linked to acceptance, adoption and continued use. Preparing for and responding appropriately to a cyber attack targeting AV technologies is likely to be critical in minimising its impact and for maintaining public confidence and trust. This paper presents data from experiments conducted in the UK and Japan exploring the effects of cyber readiness and cyber response on trust in AVs before and after a cyber attack. Using Simulation Software Generated Animations, findings indicate that after a cyber attack, trust in an AV and the company responsible for the AV sharply declines. The level of cyber readiness has the potential to impact trust in an AV before a cyber attack occurs – when more mature practices were demonstrated, trust in an AV and the company responsible was higher. Following a cyber attack, the extent to which trust declined depended on the type of cyber response. Positive responses led to a smaller reduction in trust than negative responses. Defining the term cyber affected its desirability. The pattern of results was largely similar between the UK and Japan. • Three experiments exploring cyber readiness & response on trust & blame in AVs. • Simulation-Software-Generated-Animations methodology. • Cross-country comparison between UK & Japan participants. • Cyber attacks on autonomous vehicles (AVs) sharply reduce user trust. • Positive cyber responses help reduce the diminishment of trust.