Avanade and Microsoft collaborate on Automotive, Fleet and OEM cybersecurity

Bridgestone, Continental and any other tyremakers that suffered cyber-attacks during the last year or so may be interested to learn that, on 4 January 2023, Avanade announced the expansion of its 22-year relationship with Microsoft to help the automotive industry and OEMs protect against increasing cybersecurity threats using Microsoft Azure and Operational Technology (OT) cybersecurity tools and capabilities.

Previewed at the Consumer Electronics (CES) show in Las Vegas, USA, Avanade will launch the Secure Automotive Cloud Platform (SACP) in early 2023. The solution will focus on Automotive OEMs and transportation companies and include a Vehicle Security Operations Center (VSOC). It will provide protection for manufacturing facilities, OT, and vehicles in the field, managing both vehicle health and the security lifecycle for OEMs and fleet operators, from the shopfloor all the way to fleet management.

According to the company, the SACP solution addresses the challenge of comprehensively protecting all newly produced vehicles against cyberattacks and possible threats. It enables fleet managers to monitor the status of every vehicle and initiate measures for the protection of the entire vehicle fleet, if required.

“As the automotive industry becomes increasingly reliant on computers and software to manage vehicles, both the frequency and sophistication of cyberattacks continues to grow. The need for manufacturers to maintain their vigilance and build resiliency into their protection strategies is evermore paramount,” says Rajiv Sagar, Avanade’s Global Cybersecurity Lead. “Using Microsoft Azure, the robust, innovative framework we’ve developed will provide industry specific security solutions, giving clients the ability to protect their IT, IoT and OT real estate and minimize the attack surface of their operations.”

Majority owned by Accenture, Avanade was founded in 2000 by Accenture LLP and Microsoft Corporation.