| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
- The incident of security flaws in smart car alarms, allowing potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and start engines, occurred with two well-known firms, Pandora and Clifford (Viper) [82233].
- Pandora, which had advertised its system as "unhackable," had a password flaw that allowed significant access to the app, similar to the recent incident [82233].
- Directed, the parent company for Viper and Clifford, admitted that customers' accounts could have been accessed without authorization due to a recent update, indicating a recurring issue within the organization [82233].
(b) The software failure incident having happened again at multiple_organization:
- The security flaws in smart car alarms were found in alarms produced by Viper and Pandora, two of the largest smart car alarm makers in the world, affecting as many as 3 million customers between them [82245].
- The vulnerabilities in smart car alarms are highlighted as a common issue among smart devices, indicating a broader problem across various organizations producing smart devices [82245]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase:
- The security flaws in the smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora were due to major security vulnerabilities that allowed potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and even cut off the engine. These vulnerabilities were discovered by security researchers from Pen Test Partners [Article 82245].
- The flaws were found in the alarm apps by Clifford, Viper, and Pandora, allowing unauthorized access to accounts, remote activation of alarms, opening door locks, and starting a vehicle's engine via insecure apps. The security researchers exploited these bugs to demonstrate the vulnerabilities in the systems [Article 82233].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase:
- The security researchers reached out to Viper and Pandora in late February, and the companies fixed the security issues in less than a week after the vulnerabilities were discovered. The security issues were operational in nature, as they were related to how the apps' API didn't properly authenticate for update requests, allowing unauthorized changes to account passwords and email addresses [Article 82245].
- Directed Electronics, the company that owns Viper, stated that the security vulnerability was an unintentional result of a recent system update made by their service provider. This indicates an operational failure that led to the security issue in the smart car alarm system [Article 82245]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system, outside_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident in the articles was primarily due to contributing factors that originated from within the system. The security flaws, bugs, and vulnerabilities were found within the smart car alarm apps developed by companies like Clifford, Viper, and Pandora. These flaws allowed hackers to exploit the apps to activate car alarms, unlock doors, start engines, track vehicles in real-time, and take control of the smart alarm systems [Article 82233, Article 82245].
(b) outside_system: The software failure incident also involved contributing factors that originated from outside the system. For example, the vulnerabilities in the smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora were discovered by security researchers from Pen Test Partners, indicating an external source identifying the flaws. Additionally, the security issues were fixed by the companies after being notified by the researchers, suggesting an external influence prompting the companies to address the vulnerabilities [Article 82245]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions:
- The security flaws in the smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora were exploited by security researchers, allowing potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and even cut off the engine [82233, 82245].
- The vulnerabilities in the alarm systems were due to major security flaws that allowed unauthorized access and control of the smart car alarms, without the need for human intervention [82233, 82245].
- The flaws were discovered by Pen Test Partners, who found that the smart car alarm apps' APIs did not properly authenticate update requests, leading to the security vulnerabilities [82245].
- The vulnerabilities in the smart car alarm systems were unintentional results of recent system updates made by the service providers, rather than deliberate actions by humans [82245].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions:
- The security researchers exploited the bugs in the alarm apps by Clifford, Viper, and Pandora to activate car alarms, unlock doors, and start the engine via insecure apps [82233].
- The ethical hackers demonstrated how they could exploit the vulnerabilities in the smart car alarm systems, showcasing the potential risks posed by human actions in introducing security flaws [82233].
- The security consultant at Pen Test Partners mentioned how he could potentially locate and steal high-end vehicles by exploiting the security flaws in the smart car alarm systems, highlighting the impact of human actions on security vulnerabilities [82233].
- The security expert Professor Alan Woodward criticized the companies for introducing relatively simple flaws in their security systems, emphasizing the importance of thorough testing and accountability on the part of the manufacturers [82233]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to hardware:
- The articles do not mention any software failure incident occurring due to contributing factors originating in hardware. Therefore, there is no information available regarding a software failure incident caused by hardware issues in the provided articles.
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to software:
- The software failure incident in the articles is primarily due to contributing factors originating in software. Security flaws were found in smart car alarm apps by companies like Clifford, Viper, and Pandora, allowing hackers to exploit vulnerabilities to activate car alarms, unlock doors, and start engines via insecure apps ([82233], [82245]). The vulnerabilities were related to flaws in the software of the alarm systems, such as improper authentication for update requests, allowing unauthorized access and control over the alarms. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The software failure incident in the articles was malicious in nature. Security researchers discovered major security flaws in smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora, allowing potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and even cut off the engine [82233, 82245]. The vulnerabilities were exploited by sending specific requests to change account passwords and email addresses without notifying the victims, giving full control of the smart car alarm to the attackers [82245]. Additionally, the vulnerabilities could be used to target specific types of cars, particularly expensive vehicles, posing a significant safety risk [82245]. The incident involved intentional exploitation of software flaws for unauthorized access and control of vehicles, indicating a malicious intent behind the failure. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The software failure incident related to poor decisions can be observed in the articles. The security flaws in the smart car alarm systems by Viper and Pandora were due to poor decisions made during the development and implementation of the apps. The vulnerabilities allowed potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and even cut off the engine remotely. The flaws were a result of inadequate security measures and improper authentication processes within the apps, which were exploited by security researchers [82233, 82245]. Additionally, the article mentions that security expert Professor Alan Woodward criticized the companies for introducing relatively simple flaws despite claiming security as their core business, indicating poor decisions in prioritizing security measures [82233]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to development incompetence:
- The security flaws in the car alarm apps by Clifford, Viper, and Pandora were exploited by security researchers, allowing them to activate car alarms, unlock doors, and start engines via insecure apps. This indicates a failure in the development process where security vulnerabilities were not adequately addressed [82233].
- Security researchers found major security flaws in smart alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora, allowing potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock doors, and cut off engines. The vulnerabilities were discovered by Pen Test Partners and were fixed by the companies after being notified. This highlights a failure in ensuring the security and integrity of the software during development [82245].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to accidental factors:
- Directed Electronics, the company that owns Viper, stated that the security vulnerability was an unintentional result of a recent system update made by their service provider. They worked to diagnose and correct the security issue promptly after discovering it, indicating that the vulnerability was not introduced deliberately [82245]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
(a) The software failure incident in the articles was temporary. The security flaws in the smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora were discovered by security researchers from Pen Test Partners, who then reached out to the companies to report the issues. Both Viper and Pandora fixed the security vulnerabilities in less than a week after being informed by the researchers [82233, 82245]. This indicates that the failure was temporary and was resolved promptly after being identified. |
| Behaviour |
omission, value, other |
(a) crash:
- The software failure incident in the articles does not specifically mention a crash where the system loses state and does not perform any of its intended functions.
(b) omission:
- The articles describe a scenario where the smart car alarm systems made by Viper and Pandora had major security flaws that allowed potential hackers to track vehicles, unlock their doors, and in some cases, cut off the engine. This indicates an omission in performing the intended functions of securing the vehicles [Article 82245].
(c) timing:
- The incident does not involve a timing failure where the system performs its intended functions but at the wrong time.
(d) value:
- The security flaws found in the smart car alarm systems allowed unauthorized access to control the alarms, track vehicles, unlock doors, and start engines, indicating a failure in performing the intended functions correctly [Article 82233, Article 82245].
(e) byzantine:
- The software failure incident does not exhibit a byzantine behavior with inconsistent responses and interactions.
(f) other:
- The other behavior observed in this incident is a security vulnerability that allowed unauthorized access to the smart car alarm systems, compromising the security of the vehicles [Article 82233, Article 82245]. |