Special Report
Beware of the Security of Things in School Transportation Technology
WRITTEN BY JULIE METEA T
oday’s school buses are part of the Internet of Tings (IoT), a network of devices that are embedded with electronics, sensors, cameras and connectivity to generate data for operational productivity and real-time visibility.
While technology advancements offer school districts and bus operators a wealth of functionality, they also create opportunities for ill-intended hackers to wreak havoc through unsecured systems. Information is stored in many places, including the vehicle, apps, data centers and vendor systems. Even smart phones and tablets, which aftermarket solutions leverage to capture and transmit data, can be potential targets for hacking. Such issues will continue to be an ongoing battle that requires increased technical, legislative and school administrator attention. In this month’s School Transportation News survey on bus connectivity, about 60 percent of respondents saw at least one use of data, such as messaging, GPS routing, accident reporting, vehicle health monitoring, plus student and bus tracking. “Fleet managers, dispatchers and transportation director’s roles
regarding school bus security are expanding beyond the physical security of the bus, driver and students,” said Toby McGraw, senior VP at Zonar. “Tese individuals are increasingly responsible for ensuring that data of the bus and those riding it are secure.” Bus manufacturers and aftermarket solutions providers are paying close attention to vehicles that use J1939 Controller Area Network (CAN), which enables communication and diagnostics data among vehicle components. Since it was designed in the 1980s, CAN buses do not have an inherent authentication layer, which means many updates and additional layers of security are needed. Since the beginning of 2016, more than 350 U.S. K-12 public school districts have reported cyber security-related incidents that breached personal information or caused operational losses. EdTech Strategies visualizes the incidents with pinpoints on its interactive K-12 Cyber Incident Map of the U.S. It does provide incident descriptions that range from ransomware attacks to phishing that led to data breaches. “I can foresee hackers’ focus shifting to vehicle data,” said G.P.
Singh, CEO and founder of school bus data analytic firm ByteCurve, LLC. in Chicago. “Hackers can only obtain data for one vehicle at a time, hence making it more laborious and less rewarding for them. But it’s only a matter of time when they will overcome this challenge and figure out how to access multiple vehicles” at once, he believes. If districts and operators haven’t already developed uniform guidelines and standards to address cyber incidents, federal and
20 School Transportation News • SEPTEMBER 2018
The K-12 Cyber Incident Map is a visualization of public school districts that have been victims of cybersecurity- related attacks, including phishing, ransomware, denial-of- service and unauthorized disclosures of information.
Presidio provides technologies and security for the Huntsville Intermediate School District in Texas, which covers 645 square miles of routes. With some students riding as long as 90 minutes, the district entered a partnership with Presidio to install bus Wi-Fi, dashboard apps to track ridership, and real- time vehicle diagnostics and camera views.
state regulation will soon force them to do so. Te evolution of autonomous vehicles and connected fleets is prompting governments to develop laws for new forms of transportation. Congress is working with the American Vision for Safer Trans-
portation through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies (AV START) Act, which establishes regulations for the development of highly automated vehicle (HAV) technologies. Te legislation also
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