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Hackers can hijack Jeep cars

The Jeep Cherokee was successfully hacked by researchers.

The Jeep Cherokee was successfully hacked by researchers.

You might be behind the wheel, but someone else could be driving your car.

Tech experts in the United States have found a way to control a Chrysler Jeep from the comfort of a living room, raising new concerns about the vulnerability of car security systems.

A former US spy and a private security researcher reportedly used a feature in the Fiat Chrysler in-car computer system to hijack a car being driven by a journalist in a controlled test.

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The researchers were able to activate the radio and other minor features before rewritting code allowing them to control steering and turn the car’s engine off.

“There are hundreds of thousands of cars that are vulnerable on the road now,” Mr Miller told Reuters.

Fiat Chrysler issued a statement saying the company had fixed the most serious vulnerabilities.

The new software patch is available online and from dealers.

Mr Miller and Mr Valasek said they had been working with Fiat Chrysler prior to the test since October last year, allowing the company time to resolve the issue.

Their paper on the test will be released to the Def Con Security conference in the United States next month.

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