Amazing innovation: You can hack any car by spending just $20

New Delhi: Spanish security researchers Javier Vazquez Vidal and Alberto Garcia Illera have created a circuit board using untraceable, off-the-shelf parts worth $20 that can give wireless access to the car's controls while it's on the road.This device is known as CAN Hacking Tool (CHT). Once hackers take hold of this network they can control lights, locks, steering and even brakes.It can be fitted to any car's controller area network ‘within minutes' and run malicious code through the car's system. It is about three-quarters the size of an iPhone, attaches via four wires to the Controller Area Network or CAN bus of a vehicle, drawing power from the car's electrical system and waiting to relay wireless commands sent remotely from an attacker's computer.This new research has added to a growing focus in the security industry on the vulnerability of networked automobiles to hackers' attacks.This device was previously showcased at last year's Black Hat conference in Las Vegas, and now the developers plan to demonstrate the device during the Singapore version of the event in March. Illera and fellow security researcher Javier Vazquez-Vidal have claimed that they had tested the CAN Hacking Tool (CHT) successfully on four popular makes of cars and had been able to apply the emergency brakes while the car was in motion, affect the steering, turn off the headlights, or set off the car alarm. The device currently only works via Bluetooth, but the team says that they will have a GSM version ready by the time the conference starts. This would allow remote control of a target car from much greater distances.