Ram says it is recalling certain vehicles equipped with 8.4-inch touchscreens in a sweep that updates software to prevent connected vehicles from being hacked.
Model year 2013-2015 Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickups; and 2013-2015 Ram 3500, 4500, 5500 Chassis Cabs were added to the recall list Friday.
In a controlled test, Wired last week reported it was able to hack into, and operate remotely, a Jeep Cherokee.
Remote manipulation of a vehicle is a crime, but Ram parent Fiat Chrysler (FCA US) is conducting a voluntary safety recall to update software in approximately 1,400,000 U.S. vehicles equipped with certain radios.
Hacking into a pickup is no easy feat. Ram says the software manipulation addressed by this recall required “unique and extensive technical knowledge, prolonged physical access to a subject vehicle and extended periods of time to write code.”
FCA US says it has applied network-level security measures to prevent the type of remote manipulation demonstrated in a recent media report. These measures—which required no customer or dealer actions—block remote access to certain vehicle systems and were fully tested and implemented within the cellular network July 23.
