The threat of intelligent collisions

With the advent of intelligent transportation systems (ITS), safer and more efficient roadways are on the horizon. Future generations of in-vehicle ITS will network with nearby vehicles for greater safety and efficiency. Through wireless communication and advanced sensor technologies, intelligent vehicles will learn of nearby vehicles' intentions and dynamics, and of the presence of roadway hazards. These IT technologies will allow safe, tightly spaced vehicle clusters or platoons and coordinate safe lane merges and collision avoidance in intersections and under limited-visibility conditions. For efficiency and economy, the wireless communication will probably take place directly between vehicles. The resulting intervehicle communication (IVC) network will be of the general class of mobile, ad hoc networks without a fixed infrastructure. In contrast to railroad dispatch system or air traffic control systems, which make decisions in a central location and then transmit them to trains or planes, the network will rely on ordinary nodes for routing and network management, spreading the intelligence and infrastructure throughout the network in the vehicles themselves. This article explores the IVC network's potential vulnerabilities and emerging research aimed at mitigating them. Our project, a security architecture under development called SecCar, offers a promising approach to dealing with these risks.