The company has confirmed the elements of the story while saying that it has already provided a software patch to owners.
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Mahaffey is a chief technology officer at cybersecurity firm Lookout, while Rogers is a principal security researcher at Cloudflare.
The pair were also able to raise and lower the windows, lock and unlock the Model S, and even turn it off or on at low speed, which they did during a controlled 5-mph (8-km/h) test, remotely activating the handbrake.
“Through our responsible reporting process, a dedicated team of top-notch Tesla security professionals works closely with the researcher community to ensure that we continue to protect our systems against vulnerabilities by constantly stress-testing, validating, and updating our safeguards”.
Fortunately, as this hack was performed in the name of improving security, Tesla will be releasing a security patch for the vulnerability to all Model S drivers on Thursday, before Mahaffey and Rogers present their research on stage at Def Con on Friday.
But there are two major differences between this hack and the one that forced Fiat Chrysler to issue a 1.4 million vehicle recall.
Now, the infotainment screen in the Tesla Model S is connected to all of the car’s primary functions, but only through a “gateway” meant to limit the amount of control held by user inputs. Unlike the Tesla hack, it did not require any physical access to the vehicle.
The company said it has deployed and developed an over the air update to Model S holders to tackle the “vulnerabilities”.
The researchers say that the Model S has a fail save concept that other auto lack. Now, security researchers have reportedly figured out how to take control of one of the most tech-heavy vehicles on the road today: The Tesla Model S.
Any software program can be hacked and the assumption is hackers will be able to eventually remotely attack a car’s entertainment applications, Mahaffey said.
As it turned out, Tesla’s Silicon Valley origins were apparently not enough to produce entirely secure vehicle control software.
Tesla also announced yesterday that it would start deliveries of its Model X SUV next month and said it plans to produce just over 12,000 vehicles in its third quarter.
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Furthermore, all the sensitive instruments in the vehicle were not getting commands from a legitimate source.
