SPbPU the Security system for electronic control units of cars

2021: Separation of a system into a set of domains

Specialists of Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) improved a security system in electronic control units of cars. Results of a research are published in the scientific magazine Nonlinear Phenomena in Complex Systems. The university reported about it on February 5, 2021.

The vtomobilno-transport systems existing for February, 2021 represent complex cyberphysical systems. Electronics of the car has a number of problems which are connected with limitation of computing powers of some electronic control units and rather strict requirements to high-speed performance, including data transfer rate. The majority of scientific works divides internal network of the automobile vehicle into a set of domains on their appointment.

Similar differentiation is relevant for the solution of rather simple tasks which are not requiring a flexible configuration. We divide domains not to destination, and on "the integrity level", the indicator characterizing exposure of each specific electronic block to cyberinfluence and potential harm in which will result violation of its work. Our scientific group developed a simulation model which executes an automatic clustering of control blocks of an onboard system of the vehicle and separates it into domains so that violation of security did not lead to negative effects. Such approach is modular and easily scalable. the t.e does not impose restriction for computing resources and also minimizes redundancy of the applied security measures, – Evgeny Pavlenko, associate professor Instituta of cyber security and data protection of SPbPU notes.

Evgeny Pavlenko adds that for February, 2021 in the violator's model implementation in the electronic system of motor transport is practically not considered, and the majority of researches is directed to prevention of an ability to manage by the car kind of "from the outside". The developed technology allows to make so that the violator who influences electronics in the car could not implement any electronic block and these its actions would not affect the wrong decision making in terms of piloting of the vehicle in any way.

Our development does not demand difficult calculations from electronics existing in the car. We do not add cryptographic schemes for which big capacities are necessary. For February, 2021 we at a stage of discussion of our system with producers of electronic devices for carrying out its experimental approbation, – Evgeny Pavlenko reports.

Our university specializes in work with the cyberphysical systems. Digitalization can take place only where the cyber security and protection against threats is already provided. Therefore this scientific direction comes to the first positions, and the need for such personnel is felt by all leading companies which are engaged in digital technologies and IT. is sure the vice rector for scientific work of SPbPU Vitaly Sergeyev