Autonomous vehicle developers ‘must counter terrorist potential’

Vehicle developers will have to introduce measures to counter the potential use of autonomous vehicle by terrorists, according to Iain Forbes, head of the UK Government’s Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles. Replying to a question from ITS International during a panel session at the Driverless Technology Conference in London, Forbes said: “Security questions will be an important part of the debate about autonomous vehicles. I think that it would be amiss of any government to enable something tha
December 1, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
Vehicle developers will have to introduce measures to counter the potential use of autonomous vehicle by terrorists, according to Iain Forbes, head of the UK Government’s Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles.

Replying to a question from 1846 ITS International during a panel session at the Driverless Technology Conference in London, Forbes said: “Security questions will be an important part of the debate about autonomous vehicles. I think that it would be amiss of any government to enable something that might introduce new risks to society.”

Speaking so soon after the attacks in Paris he said the question was very relevant: “It is something that will have to be resolved.” However he added that he did not think it was an insurmountable problem: “We identify potential risks and find ways to deal with them.”

Joost Vantomme from FEBiAC (which represents the Belgian car industry) observed that the question applied equally to drones: “The need for regulation of drones is a topic of discussion in the European Commission and European Parliament,” he said.

Location Based Systems

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Silos are last century’s thinking
    April 21, 2016
    After 45 years in transportation, Ken Philmus sees the need for major change in a sector currently ill-prepared to meet the challenge of funding and rapidly advancing technological change. Having worked in both the public and private sectors, Ken Philmus, currently senior vice president of transportation solutions at Xerox, appreciates both approaches, but times are changing and he believes the sector needs to change too. “I like trains, planes and automobiles but I love the concept of mobility and that’s w
    Read More
  • The origin story of ITS World Congress
    June 9, 2025
    As the ITS industry decamps to Atlanta in August, a question: who came up with the idea of an ITS World Congress in the first place? Adam Hill delves into recent history with one man who was actually there - ITS legend Eric Sampson
    Read More
  • TRL answer key questions on urban traffic control
    March 21, 2014
    PC-based urban traffic control (UTC) continues to grow. Gavin Jackman, Head of Traffic and Software at TRL, looks forward. 1. PC-based urban traffic control is now very well established throughout the world. What have been the most significant developments or new features that have become available over the last two years? That’s a really interesting question because, from a software perspective, a few things are noticeable. Firstly, there are more players on the market – TRL’s Transyt Online, Imtech’s Imf
    Read More
  • Øresund bridges the front line for border crossing traffic
    September 15, 2016
    Timothy Compston considers the challenges faced by the operators of the Øresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden, the largest structure of its kind across Europe. In light of the concerns about the ongoing security threat and the unprecedented flow of migrants, many of the countries that make up the Schengen Area in Europe have re-introduced border controls. For its part, Sweden has rolled out ID checks for train, bus and ferry passengers from Denmark placing the landmark Øresund Bridge very much on the fr
    Read More

Highlighted Content