Author: AUTOCRYPT

SEOUL, South Korea | E-mobility, or electric mobility, is projected to mark the next significant paradigm shift in the transportation industry, providing growth opportunities not only for electric vehicle manufacturers but all service providers in the fields of energy and transport systems. While progress is accelerating in pace and sophistication, some obstacles to EV adoption remain.

One of the main issues is that EVs require charging along their journey, and likely at charging stations managed by different charge point operators. To prevent compatibility issues down the road, the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) was established to allow interoperability in EV charging infrastructure and streamline payment processes across mobility operators. With more than 40,000 installations in 49 countries, OCPP has become the de-facto open communication standard for the open charger to network communications.

Likewise, standards are crucial for the effective implementation of security. Penta Security Systems Inc., a leading provider of web, IoT, and data security solutions and services, is paving the way for reliable electric vehicle charging by adding an electric vehicle charging security solution, AutoCrypt V2G, to the world’s first comprehensive suite of security for intelligent transport systems, AutoCrypt.

Created through cooperation on interoperability and conformance with leading industry organizations including OmniAir Consortium and CharIN, AutoCrypt V2G provides a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) system for authenticating and authorizing all entities within the e-mobility service infrastructure. This enables the secure deployment of Plug&Charge, which is a method of simplified payments for EV charging via the transmission of encrypted data from the vehicle to the charger when plugged in, charging, and processing automated payments.

Utilizing OCPP to secure communication between charging supply and backend billing systems, and designed according to the leading ISO/IEC 15118 standard, AutoCrypt ensures essential security technologies, such as encryption and digital signatures, are used to protect EVs during charging.

Starting with Europe, AutoCrypt V2G is set to enter the EV charging market next year via a partnership with smart grid solution provider GridWiz and its Plug&Charge solution, which utilizes AutoCrypt V2G for safe and convenient EV charging and payments processing. This comes following the successful presentation of AutoCrypt at the 31st International Electric Vehicle Symposium & Exhibition (EVS 31) and International Electric Vehicle Technology Conference 2018 (EVTeC 2018), one of the largest international events for electric vehicles, and consistent participation in ISO/IEC 15118 testing symposiums worldwide to ensure the wide applicability of AutoCrypt V2G.

Chief Technology Officer of Penta Security Systems, SangGyoo Sim emphasized how AutoCrypt addresses key concerns in the industry. “To encourage widespread adoption of e-mobility and EVs, it is essential that the charging infrastructure is both secure and conforms to industry standards. Furthermore, as EV charging not only involves the charging process but also the exchange of sensitive data, robust security is necessary for protecting data integrity and user privacy. AutoCrypt V2G ensures that all communications throughout the service infrastructure are adequately protected.”

Penta Security Systems Inc. will head and monitor security systems for K-City, testing, and certifying the safety of smart vehicles. With the increasing prominence of smart and connected vehicles in Asia, South Korea is no stranger to the need for an intelligent transportation system (ITS), comprised of networks of smart roads and highways to communicate with the technology of connected and autonomous cars. Smart roads and highways allow for streamlined connectivity between a vehicle and surrounding vehicles as well as infrastructure and roadside units.

This connectivity must function seamlessly to provide maximum efficiency and security. The first-ever ITS project in Korea began in 2016 with smart roads set up in two major cities, Daejeon and Sejong. Consequently, Yeoju was added as the third ITS city in 2017 with the construction set to complete in December this year. Penta Security Systems, a leading provider of web, IoT, and data security solutions and services, has set up and provided oversight on the security systems for all three cities by ensuring that its connected car security solution, AutoCrypt, protected vehicles, devices, and roadside units in the ITS from malicious traffic and tampering.

Following the successes of ITS and with data collected from smart roads and highways, K-City, a new testbed—the first of its kind in the country and second-largest in the world—will open to both tests and certify the safety of autonomous cars. Consequently, Penta Security received the green light to head the installation and operation of security systems for K-City, implementing Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology as well as V2X security systems.

This will ensure that communication between a vehicle and other vehicles (V2V, Vehicle-to-Vehicle) and infrastructure (V2I, Vehicle-to-Infrastructure) through roadside units are properly secured and encrypted. Penta Security will play a critical role in testing autonomous vehicles for proper security implementation as part of the certification for K-City. Chief Technology Officer of Penta Security Systems, Daniel ES Kim remarked, “One of the central challenges for autonomous vehicles is that if the cars are compromised through internal or external networks, it is no longer a technical issue, but an issue of human safety.

Penta Security’s cooperation in leading security operations at the new testbed means that not only will K-City test autonomous vehicles for their operational technology, but security will also be highlighted as a priority.” Penta Security holds a “Secure First, Then Connect” approach to IoT, prioritizing logic-based security before connectivity in order to provide comprehensive and effective security. South Korea’s K-City, along with Penta Security’s security implementations, is set to open for testing in 2018.