WISeKey IoT Cybersecurity Allows Electric Vehicles to Securely Communicate with Charging Stations and Network of Vehicles

WISeKey IoT Cybersecurity Allows Electric Vehicles to Securely Communicate with Charging Stations and Network of Vehicles

GENEVA – July 8, 2020 - WISeKey International Holding Ltd (“WISeKey”, SIX: WIHN / Nasdaq: WKEY), a leading Swiss cybersecurity and IoT company today announced that is combining software and microchips to allow Electric Vehicles (EVs) to securely communicate with charging stations, the network of connected vehicles, and even the electrical grid.

The company has shown strong growth and made tremendous progress on the EV and Connected Vehicle industry with the signing of strategic partnerships with leading European automobile manufacturers.   WISeKey’s initial application was based on the integration of the WISeKey IoT and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) in the manufacturers connected car solutions which allowed them to authenticate legitimate car components and enabled owners to securely interact with the car’s smart features. This technology has been upgraded to allow EVs and charging stations to securely communicate using network segmentation technologies to reduce the associated risk.

EV charging stations are an existing risk as attackers can compromise the security of the electronic charging stations to cause damage.  This is often done through the Near-Field Communication (NFC) card that is used to handle billing when drivers charge their EVs as third-party providers of these ID cards, often do not secure their customer data.

WISeKey’s solutions reduce EV’s potential security threats by providing:

• IoT “secure element” chips, essentially a small smartcard, that can be embedded into different components of the car to enhance the security of their electronic functions.
• Highly-scalable and reliable PKI to create the electronic credentials that assert the identity of the device or authorized users and enables encryption to protect data or software integrity. These PKI solutions are highly adaptable to both the “lightweight” technology needs of IoT and the changing attributes of IoT devices over time after the vehicle has left the car factory.

In short, the WISeKey IoT solutions benefit both:  the manufacturer by providing cost-effective solution to secure car components and their related online services, and also drivers in securing the massive amount of data produced by smart cars in daily use – which includes significant detail on the driver’s personal behavior and movements, similar to that produced by a smartphone.