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 Cyber Security, our Featured partner, leads the list and is the directory's only pure-play automotive specialist; the broader-scope research firms below also carry genuine, published vehicle-security credentials.
Related: Automotive cybersecurity companies · Product threat intelligence providers · TISAX compliance pen testing
Munich- and Budapest-based embedded cybersecurity experts focused on financial services, automotive and mobility, manufacturing and industrial automation, energy and more. The services and platform go beyond compliance, supporting the requirements of the Cyber Resilience Act, PCI PTS, UN R155, ISO/SAE 21434 and other standards and regulations.
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.
Boutique security consultancy specialising in IoT, SCADA/ICS, embedded systems, and hardware security research with world-renowned researchers.
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.
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.
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.
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.