The German media ZDF and Spiegel have revealed that Volkswagen’s information was hacked for years. According to the experts they interviewed, the tracks seem to lead to China.
15:27•Updated 17:00
German magazine Spiegel and TV company ZDF say that hackers are suspected of having access to the files of the car giant Volkswagen for years. Among the 19,000 files that fell into the wrong hands are, for example, information related to the development of engines, gearboxes and electric cars.
Spiegel and ZDF’s information is based on several interviews and more than 40 internal Volkswagen documents.
According to German media, hackers first started looking for vulnerabilities in Volkswagen’s networks in 2010. Information was taken in several attacks until Volkswagen was able to contain the data leak in 2015.
The company noticed the attacks but did not disclose them to the public.
The information could have helped competitors
According to experts interviewed by Spiegel and ZDF, all traces point to China, but there is no absolute certainty about the spy. For example, a security expert familiar with the case says that based on the IP address, it would appear that the spy had a connection to China’s military intelligence. The hacking software used also refers to China.
However, there is no certainty about China connections.
According to the German media, it would seem that Volkswagen also had strong assumptions about the perpetrators. In the company’s internal documents, for example, there is a mention that blocking the data leak was scheduled to start at 4 pm on Friday afternoon China time – apparently so that the hackers’ work week would have just ended.
Automotive expert interviewed by Spiegel and ZDF Helena Wisbert believes that the leaked information could have helped Volkswagen’s competitors. According to him, for example, the information related to the development of electric cars and hydrogen cars is still important in international competition.
The Volkswagen group also includes other car brands such as Škoda, Audi, Lamborghini, Porsche and Bentley.
China has been an important market for Volkswagen, and it has been the market leader in China. However, it has already lost that status. According to Kauppalehti in 2023, the Chinese BYD had become the best-selling car in China.
Instead, in Europe, Chinese electric cars have started to grow their market. This year, the market share of Chinese cars is believed to rise to more than 25 percent of electric cars sold in Europe.
The matter has been corrected on 20.4. 5:00 p.m.: Bugatti is no longer part of the Volkswagen group, contrary to what was claimed in the story. It belonged to the group until 2021. Today, Bugatti’s largest owner is the Croatian company Rimac, although Volkswagen Group’s Porche is still a significant owner of Bugatti.