SCOTUS Says Suit Over Fiat-Chrysler Hack Can Move Forward

The US Supreme Court, this week, enabled a class action cybersecurity-related lawsuit against Fiat-Chrysler to proceed, after refusing to hear the auto company's appeal. 

In 2015, security researchers Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek showed that they could remotely take over a Jeep Cherokee's control systems by hacking through the SUV's infotainment system. In 2016, they showed they could do it again.

Even though no examples of the hack have been seen in the wild, and Fiat-Chrysler issued a recall affecting more than a million cars in order to patch the vulnerability, a class-action suit was filed against the company.

The plaintiffs say Fiat-Chrysler knew about the vulnerability as early as 2011 but did nothing about it until the public demonstration. They contend that, had they known of the issue, they might have chosen to purchase different vehicles.

Fiat-Chrysler had filed an appeal asking that the suit be dismissed because the vulnerability has been patched. Now, the US Supreme Court says that the suit can go forward, remediation notwithstanding. Arguments in the suit are scheduled to be heard beginning in October.

For more, read here and here.