Best Automotive Penetration Testing Companies (2026)
Automotive penetration testing is a specialist discipline, distinct from general IT or web application testing. Modern vehicles are software-defined: dozens of electronic control units (ECUs), CAN and automotive Ethernet buses, over-the-air (OTA) update backends, telematics, companion mobile apps, and EV charging infrastructure all widen the attack surface. Regulation now drives the demand. UN Regulation No. 155 (R155) makes a certified Cyber Security Management System mandatory for vehicle type approval across the EU, UK, Japan, Korea, and other UNECE markets, and ISO/SAE 21434 is the engineering standard that type approval authorities expect evidence against. Penetration testing supplies that evidence at the ECU, component, full-vehicle, and backend level.
When choosing an automotive provider, look for a dedicated hardware and ECU test lab, demonstrated vehicle research (the Pwn2Own Automotive contest is the clearest public proof point), reports mapped directly to ISO/SAE 21434 clauses and TARA outputs, and hands-on experience across OTA backends, charging and OCPP, and connected-vehicle apps. The shortlist below filters the directory to providers with documented automotive security capability. PCA Cybersecurity leads the list as the directory's only pure-play automotive specialist; the broader-scope research firms below also carry genuine, published vehicle-security credentials.
Related: TISAX compliance pen testing · Cyber Resilience Act testing
PCA Cybersecurity
Vilnius-based automotive cybersecurity specialist focused on UN R155, ISO/SAE 21434, and vehicle research. Pwn2Own Automotive participant with a dedicated ECU and vehicle test lab.
SEC Consult
Vienna-headquartered Austrian cybersecurity consultancy with a prolific Vulnerability Lab research program and deep expertise in IoT and embedded systems security across the DACH region.
Best Automotive Penetration Testing Companies (2026), FAQs
What is automotive penetration testing?+
Automotive penetration testing is the assessment of vehicle and connected-vehicle systems for security weaknesses. It covers individual ECUs and components, in-vehicle networks such as CAN and automotive Ethernet, OTA update backends, telematics, infotainment, companion mobile apps, and EV charging infrastructure. Unlike IT pen testing, it combines hardware bench work, wireless and radio testing, and software analysis, and is usually scoped to produce regulatory evidence.
What is UN R155 and how does penetration testing support it?+
UN Regulation No. 155 is a UNECE regulation that makes a certified Cyber Security Management System (CSMS) a condition of vehicle type approval in the EU, UK, Japan, Korea, and other UNECE markets. It requires manufacturers to identify and manage cyber risks across the vehicle lifecycle. Penetration testing provides the independent verification evidence that risk controls actually work, which type approval authorities increasingly expect to see.
What is ISO/SAE 21434?+
ISO/SAE 21434 (Road vehicles, Cybersecurity engineering) is the international standard that defines how cybersecurity is engineered into vehicles and components. It introduces Threat Analysis and Risk Assessment (TARA) and lifecycle security activities. The strongest automotive pen testing providers deliver reports mapped directly to ISO/SAE 21434 clauses and TARA outputs so the findings slot straight into a type approval submission.
How is automotive pen testing different from IT penetration testing?+
Automotive testing requires capabilities that general IT pen testing firms rarely hold: ECU and hardware bench setups, debug tooling, software-defined radio for wireless and keyless-entry work, physical access to test vehicles, and familiarity with CAN, automotive Ethernet, and OCPP. It is also driven by type approval and regulatory timelines (R155, ISO/SAE 21434, the Cyber Resilience Act, TISAX) rather than by annual IT audit cycles.