For those of us who watch the automotive industry, the most interesting name on the list of appointees to President Barack Obama’s Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity was Joe Sullivan. Why Mr. Sullivan? Because he is the Chief Security Officer at Uber. He is the only proposed member connected to the automotive industry.

Cybersecurity in the automotive industry has been a recurring theme. Your car is already connected. After all, billboards are already identifying what car you are in as you pass and sending you ads tailored to you. Hackers remotely stopped a car on the road. There is no question that as more cars get WiFi and 4G (or eventually 5G) they will be even more connected an vulnerable. To say nothing of how vulnerable your vehicle will be when you are no longer driving it yourself.

Do we need terrorist proof cars? Perhaps. But certainly we would all drive a little more securely if our vehicles were encrypted, protected and guarded against. Thankfully, as the government considers cybersecurity, it is thinking of our vehicles.