Hundreds of Porsche owners across Russia report their vehicles have suddenly “bricked,” with one dealer group suggesting the problem may be due to a deliberate hack of their satellite-based security systems. Headlight.News has more.
A 2022 Porsche 911. That was the last year Porsche ran commercial operations in Russia.
Porsche owners across Russia have reported that their vehicles suddenly refuse to start and, in some cases, have locked them out.
The exact extent of the problem is unclear, as is the cause. But it has been impacting all different Porsche models, according to reports from Russia. One major dealer group claimed the issue “was done deliberately,” it has so far provided no proof.
The trouble appears to be linked to the satellite-based security system used on Russian Porsches. Some owners claim to have gotten their vehicles to operate again by rebooting the security systems.
What’s happening
A Russian dealer group believes the problem was deliberately caused, likely by hackers.
In recent days, hundreds of Russian owners say their Porsches were effectively “bricked.” In some cases, their engines failed to start. In others, the engines quickly shut down, their fuel systems apparently short-circuiting. Still others reported being unable to open their vehicles’ doors.
The problem appears to be impacting all different Porsche models available in Russia, noted the Moscow Times, an independent Russian newspaper.
“It’s possible this was done deliberately,” a spokesman for Rolf, Russia’s largest dealer group, told the news website RBC. “Any vehicle can be blocked,” added Rolf service director Yulia Trushkova.
Sabotage?
There’s general agreement, according to various news reports, that the epidemic of failures has been linked to the factory-installed satellite security system used on Porsches operating in Russia.
What’s unclear is why this is happening. The timing has generated concerns that the vehicles are specifically being targeted by cybercriminals. Russia is frequently cited as a base for some of the world’s most sophisticated hacker groups, such as Fancy Bear. But it has also been targeted back by cyber gangs from other parts of the world. This tit-for-tat digital warfare has been escalating since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly four years ago.
For Russian Porsche owners, the good news is that, “Currently, the blocking can be bypassed by resetting the factory alarm unit and disassembling it. We are continuing to investigate the issue and the mechanics’ options for unlocking the vehicles,” said Trushkova.
Russian Porsche owner groups also reported that some of their members got their vehicles to work by disconnecting their batteries for at least 10 hours.
Out of the picture
Like many global automakers, Porsche officially stopped delivering vehicles to Russia in March 2022, following that countries invasion of Ukraine. At the time, it had 26 locations operating in 20 cities across the country. Since then, retailers like Rolf have found workarounds to get some of the sporty vehicles through other channels.
Porsche still operates three subsidiaries in Russia which, noted Moscow Times. It has been unable to sell.
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