Millions of Kia vehicles were vulnerable to remote attacks with just a license plate number


In June of 2024 security researchers uncovered a set of vulnerabilities in the Kia dealer portal that allowed them to remotely take over any Kia vehicle built after 2013—and all they needed was a license plate number.

According to the researchers: “These attacks could be executed remotely on any hardware-equipped vehicle in about 30 seconds, regardless of whether it had an active Kia Connect subscription.” How was this possible?

Read more…
Source: Malwarebytes Labs


Sign up for our Newsletter


Related:

  • The invisible passenger in your car

    August 21, 2026

    While monitoring Android threats in June 2026, Kaspersky discovered a new piece of Android malware. What struck the researchers as unusual was that it installed like an ordinary user app yet made no attempt to disguise itself as legitimate software: it had no user interface at all. This led us to suspect the app might ...

  • ‘Proactive SIM’ cards can hijack smartphones, IoT devices and even EV chargers

    August 18, 2026

    A malicious SIM card can instruct the device it sits in to run commands of an attacker’s choosing, and on the cellular modules embedded in electric vehicle chargers, industrial routers, and car telematics units, essentially allowing it to take the entire device over. Researchers from the University of Birmingham and the German security firm Fuzzware demonstrated ...

  • Millions of cars could be tracked and unlocked by a hidden security flaw

    July 23, 2026

    A car alarm vendor’s coding mistake has left millions of vehicles vulnerable to theft and location tracking. Thanks to the way dealers sell car alarms, many affected drivers don’t even know they have one installed. The device is the KARR Security System, a Bluetooth-enabled aftermarket alarm built by Acrisure Protection Group. It’s installed by dealers, primarily ...

  • Nissan says Oracle PeopleSoft break-in may have spilled payroll records, SSNs

    June 29, 2026

    Nissan has joined the growing list of Oracle customers cleaning up after a cyberattack, warning employees that payroll records, bank details, Social Security numbers, and other personal data may have been stolen. In a filing submitted to the California Attorney General on Friday, Nissan Americas said Oracle had informed it of “a cyber event” involving the personnel records ...

  • Russian hackers were behind $2.5B hack of Jaguar Land Rover

    June 26, 2026

    Last year, hackers attacked car giant Jaguar Land Rover (JPL), one of the U.K.’s biggest employers. The hack halted production for months and made a dent in the country’s economy. The damage was so severe that the U.K. government decided to bail out the company with a £1.5 billion (around $2 billion) payment, and estimates say the hack cost the British ...

  • Nissan says Red Hat breach affected thousands of customers

    December 23, 2025

    Japanese car giant Nissan has confirmed losing sensitive data on thousands of people as a result of a third-party supply chain attack. In a press release, the company said the recent attack on Red Hat affected its customers, as well, as the latter was commissioned by Nissan to develop a customer management system for one of ...