Default Credentials and WAF Bypasses Let Researchers Remotely Hijack Connected Cars
Written by AI from the linked story. Not reviewed by an editor. How this works
Researchers exploited weaknesses in the ForgeRock identity platform used by major automakers, including WAF bypasses and default credentials left in production environments, to gain unauthorized remote control over vehicle functions such as door locks and engine starts. The root failure was twofold: identity infrastructure was misconfigured with default credentials never rotated, and perimeter defenses (WAF) were bypassable, meaning no meaningful barrier stood between attackers and sensitive vehicle control APIs. This matters enormously because connected vehicle APIs bridge the digital and physical worlds — a compromised app is not just a data breach, it is a potential physical safety incident. Organizations deploying third-party identity platforms must treat their configuration hardening and credential hygiene with the same rigor as their own code.
Tactical Insight
Immediate actions
- Rotate all default credentials on the ForgeRock (or any identity platform) deployment immediately and enforce a credential inventory audit.
- Test WAF rule sets against known bypass techniques and validate that authentication endpoints cannot be reached via alternative paths or encoded requests.
Long-term improvements
- Adopt a secure-by-default configuration baseline for all identity and API gateway components, reviewed at every version upgrade.
- Implement API-level authorization checks that do not rely solely on perimeter controls, ensuring vehicle command APIs require strong, scoped tokens regardless of how the request arrives.
- Conduct regular third-party penetration testing specifically targeting connected vehicle APIs and the identity layer supporting them.
Detection measures
- Deploy behavioral anomaly detection on vehicle command APIs to alert on unusual patterns such as bulk unlock commands or geographically improbable access.
- Centralize and monitor identity platform logs for failed authentication attempts, WAF rule triggers, and out-of-hours administrative access.