Chapter 6 - Automotive Software Security

As more software is added to vehicles, enforcing software security is more important than ever before.

The Leading Automotive Software Security Challenges

Like last year, “meeting regulations requiring cybersecurity approval” was the leading software security challenge (38%) and “enforcing secure coding practices” was the second-most cited security challenge (26%). This is not surprising, as security for automotive software is a newer requirement compared to safety. Static analysis tools are essential for meeting today’s security requirements.

The “Other” category increased by 4%, and many of the respondents’ answers mentioned a lack of security awareness, knowledge of automotive security, and developer education. This is interesting, considering that in earlier security-related questions, developer training decreased in importance compared to previous years.

Additional “Other” responses included some OEMs not taking a proactive approach to cybersecurity, leaving it for the suppliers to figure out; while still other answers included security challenges around tracking and scaling vehicle software as well as scaling security processes across complex and fragmented supply chains.

Most organizations who responded to this year’s survey said they are investing in a DevSecOps culture, which increased by 4% since 2025. However, as shown below, those who provide tools and security training for developers decreased by 9%. These numbers could mean that as training has become more established, teams are more confident in applying best practices for DevSecOps and interested in expanding their efforts in other areas. Since those who were impacted several times by software vulnerabilities rose by 3% this year, organizations are recognizing the need for a more robust security culture.