The car will not start without permission “from the cloud”, which means a great paralysis of the systems
2026-03-25 08:00
publication
2026-03-25 08:00
You get in the car, try to start it and it fails. Your car has decided that you won't go anywhere today because it didn't get permission from the server room to start the engine. Sounds like the script for a bad episode of Black Mirror? Unfortunately, smart alcohol interlock users in 46 US states had to choose alternative means of travel following a cyber attack.
Alcohol interlocks in cars are most often used for people who drive on double gas. The principle of operation of ignition interlock devices is simple: you blow into the device installed in the car, it analyzes the sample and if the test is negative (so the person behind the wheel did not hit the igniter), you can start the engine after receiving the system's blessing.
The problem lies in connecting to the Internet, because the devices require, as the manufacturer explains, remote calibration and ongoing data transmission to supervisory authorities. And let's face it – anything connected to the Internet can be hacked. This is what happened in this case.
From the “cloud” we have a storm
An attack on the infrastructure of one of the leading manufacturers of these devices exposed the greatest weakness of always-on systems. When the servers went down, thousands of locks that happened to require routine verification or calibration went into failover mode. In practice, they preventively turned off the ignition on everything – regardless of whether the driver is actually under the influence or not – describes Niebezpiecznik.pl.
There was nothing the drivers could do. Removing the device arbitrarily means violating the terms of the sentence and being quickly sent to prison. In turn, the convicted person cannot drive other vehicles than those designated with the above-mentioned alcohol interlocks. So a cyber attack equaled grounding.
So far, no one has admitted to attacking car systems.
Let's connect to the network. What could go wrong?
The newer the cars, the more packed with electronics they are. Manufacturers have the option of remotely immobilizing the vehicle (e.g. in the event of theft or non-payment of leasing installments). And if they have it, so does a skilled hacker. This means that the immobilization of cars may affect everyone.
“I'm not going anywhere.” Porsches in Russia have hung up, blocked and won't start
Porsches on the streets of Moscow can be seen more often on a trailer than on their own wheels. Hundreds of owners have reported that their vehicles won't or can't start. The nationwide failure affected Porsche models manufactured since 2013, which are equipped with the brand's factory VTS satellite security system.
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