SAFERtec · Project

Cybersecurity Testing Toolkit That Scores How Safe Connected Cars Really Are

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Connected cars talk to road signs, cloud services, and your phone — but every wireless connection is a potential door for hackers. SAFERtec built a toolkit that checks how secure each part of a connected vehicle system really is, gives it a security score, and pinpoints the weak spots. Think of it like a full health checkup for your car's digital immune system. Instead of testing everything from scratch at enormous cost, manufacturers can use one unified tool to assess all their components.

By the numbers

EUR 3,819,380

EU funding for cybersecurity toolkit development

consortium partners across the automotive value chain

European and Israeli countries represented

70%

industry participation rate in the consortium

total deliverables produced

The business problem

What needed solving

Connected vehicles expose dozens of wireless interfaces — from roadside communication units to cloud apps and passenger smartphones — and every one is a potential attack vector. Testing the security of each component individually is prohibitively expensive for automotive manufacturers and their supply chains. Meanwhile, automotive cybersecurity standards are incomplete, leaving OEMs without a clear, cost-effective way to measure and prove their vehicles are secure.

The solution

What was built

A fully functional Assurance Toolkit prototype that quantifies cybersecurity levels across connected vehicle components using standardized metrics. The project also produced threat analysis and attack models for V2I systems, penetration testing results on hardware and software modules, protection profiles summarizing risks per component, and statistical methods to calculate security assurance levels — totaling 21 deliverables.

Audience

Who needs this

Automotive OEMs building connected and autonomous vehicle platformsTier-1 automotive suppliers developing V2I communication modulesCybersecurity testing and certification companies serving the automotive sectorRoad infrastructure operators deploying smart roadside communication unitsAutomotive standards bodies and type-approval authorities

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Automotive Manufacturing

enterprise

Target: Automotive OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers building connected vehicle platforms

If you are an automotive OEM struggling to prove your connected car platform meets cybersecurity regulations — this project developed a fully functional Assurance Toolkit that quantifies security levels across all vehicle components using standardized metrics. With 10 consortium partners across 7 countries and 70% industry participation, it was built with real automotive supply chain input. It replaces expensive one-off security audits with a unified, repeatable assessment process.

Cybersecurity Testing Services

mid-size

Target: Vehicle cybersecurity testing and certification firms

If you are a cybersecurity firm looking to expand into automotive testing but lack specialized tools for vehicle-to-infrastructure communication — this project produced penetration testing methods and protection profiles specifically designed for connected vehicle systems. The toolkit covers both roadside unit communication and cloud-connected applications. It was validated across 21 deliverables covering threat analysis, attack modeling, and risk-level calculation.

Road Infrastructure Operations

enterprise

Target: Road infrastructure operators and smart city authorities managing V2I systems

If you are a road infrastructure operator deploying roadside communication units and worried about cyberattacks on your V2I network — this project specifically tested the security of vehicle-to-infrastructure communication endpoints. The toolkit provides risk-level calculations and assurance levels tailored to infrastructure-side components. With EUR 3,819,380 in EU funding and partners from 7 countries, the research covers real European deployment scenarios.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to license or use this toolkit?

The project describes the Assurance Toolkit as open-access, which suggests it may be available without licensing fees. However, the project ended in March 2020, so current availability and any commercial terms would need to be confirmed with the coordinator. Integration and customization costs would depend on your specific vehicle platform.

Can this scale to test full vehicle fleets or production lines?

The toolkit was designed for unified, cost-effective use across all modules of a connected vehicle system — from individual hardware components to upper-layer applications. Based on available project data, it handles both roadside unit communication and cloud application interfaces. Scaling to production-line integration would likely require additional engineering beyond the prototype.

What is the IP situation — who owns this technology?

SAFERtec was funded as a Research and Innovation Action under Horizon 2020 with EUR 3,819,380 in EU contribution across 10 partners. IP ownership typically follows Horizon 2020 grant agreement rules, where each partner owns the results they generate. The toolkit was described as open-access, but specific IP terms should be verified with the coordinating institution in Greece.

Does this help with UN R155 and automotive cybersecurity regulations?

The project aimed to feed results into incomplete automotive standards and define standardized security assurance levels — directly relevant to UN R155 (cybersecurity management systems) which became mandatory for new vehicle types. The threat analysis, risk-level calculation, and protection profiles align with what regulators now require. However, the project ended before UN R155 took full effect, so regulatory mapping may need updating.

How mature is this technology — is it ready to deploy?

The project produced a fully functional Assurance Toolkit prototype as its main demonstration deliverable, along with 21 total deliverables covering threat analysis and penetration testing. It was a Research and Innovation Action, meaning the focus was on proving the concept works rather than commercial deployment. The toolkit would need further productization before enterprise-grade deployment.

Can this integrate with existing automotive development tools?

Based on available project data, the toolkit was designed for unified use across different vehicle modules and communication interfaces. It covers V2I roadside units, cloud applications, and smart device interactions. Specific integration details with tools like AUTOSAR or existing SIEM platforms are not described in the project objectives.

Consortium

Who built it

SAFERtec's 10-partner consortium across 7 countries (Germany, Greece, France, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Netherlands) has a strong 70% industry ratio, meaning 7 out of 10 partners come from the private sector — well above average for EU research projects. This signals that the work was shaped by real market needs, not just academic curiosity. The consortium includes 2 SMEs alongside larger industrial players and is coordinated by a Greek research institute (EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTON). The geographic spread covers major European automotive markets (Germany, France, Italy) plus Israel's strong cybersecurity ecosystem, giving the results broad applicability across the EU automotive supply chain.

EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTONCoordinator · EL
TOMTOM NAVIGATION BVthirdparty · NL
COMMSIGNIA Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasagparticipant · HU
CENTRO RICERCHE FIAT SCPAparticipant · IT
AIRBUS CYBERSECURITY SASparticipant · FR
TOMTOM LOCATION TECHNOLOGY GERMANY GMBHparticipant · DE
OPPIDAparticipant · FR
UNIVERSITY OF PIRAEUS RESEARCH CENTERparticipant · EL
SWARCO ITALIA SRLparticipant · IT

How to reach the team

The coordinator is a Greek research institute (EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTON). SciTransfer can locate the project coordinator's contact details for you.

Order a report on this consortium See EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTON profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want an introduction to the SAFERtec team to explore licensing their cybersecurity toolkit or adapting their methods for your vehicle platform? SciTransfer can arrange a direct meeting with the right people.

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