Israeli Cyber Solution Keeps Car Owners Two Steps Ahead of Sophisticated Thieves

Remember those old movies where car thieves would smash the window and hotwire crude wires to start the car and get away? Well, those cinematic plots are now history. In 2025, cars are stolen using sophisticated cyberattacks. Hackers download a fairly inexpensive, encrypted cyberattack tool (connector) from the dark web, and use it to target a weak point in the vehicle's shell - i.e., a headlight or rear bumper.

A connected vehicle has many entry points, which can be used to access the vehicle's nervous system. By attaching the connector, the thief can feed malicious commands to disable security systems, unlock the doors and start the engine, all of which takes just a few seconds.

This is how thousands of cars are broken into around the world today, and the stolen vehicles - not to mention the burglars themselves - are never found, or not found in time. Everybody loses here - the vehicle owners first and foremost - but also car manufacturers, whose reputations are damaged, as well as insurance companies, some of which are already suffering financial losses and are no longer willing to insure "theft prone" vehicles. Premiums rise, naturally, while criminal organizations cheer.

To combat these sophisticated hacks, PlaxidityX (formerly Argus Cyber Security), a global leader in automotive cybersecurity, has developed its vDome solution. This groundbreaking solution, recently awarded the 2025 CLEPA Innovation Award (see below), is changing the rules of the game. Unlike tracking and recovery systems, vDome is designed to pre-empt and prevent keyless vehicle theft by monitoring and blocking theft attempts in real time.

"We were able to crack the hacking pattern and identify attack attempts before they could be carried out, effectively cyber-protecting the cars," says Jacob Avidar, VP of R&D and CISO at PlaxidityX. "By integrating directly into the vehicle network, vDome continuously monitors every command in real time, identifying and blocking keyless theft attempts as they occur. Within milliseconds, it detects the attempted theft and triggers an immediate preventive response, and all without any false alarms."

How does it work?
"When a command is received to open the car door or start the engine - we, unlike the manufacturers, know how to identify whether the command is valid or not.Keep in mind that hackers' tools are 'disguised' to create the impression of real events that require door opening or ignition, such as leaving the car with the mechanic. Our system knows how to identify this and prevent it."

The Amazing Tesla Experiment
One of the main advantages that Avidar points out is the option for installing vDome in existing vehicles. "We have revolutionized the market with a product classified as an 'aftermarket service'," he explains. "Typically, it takes two to three years for automakers to develop a new generation of cybersecurity solutions, and in the meantime vehicles already on the road remain vulnerable. We provide immediate protection, which is especially essential for vehicle owners who tend to pass on official software updates."

In this context, he reveals details of a groundbreaking experiment conducted by PlaxidityX. The company purchased a Tesla vehicle - considered one of the most technologically advanced vehicles with the most lines of code - for research and vulnerability testing purposes. The goal was an in-depth examination of possible targets for attack. After a series of complex experiments, the research team was able to hack the vehicle. PlaxidityX immediately contacted Tesla and reported the discovered cyber vulnerabilities, and the latter announced that it would take steps to correct the deficiencies. "We learned a lot from this experiment," says Avidar. "We learned vital lessons and built innovative models that can address all of the vulnerabilities we discovered during the study."

Connectivity Will Expand Attack Surfaces
PlaxidityX was founded in 2014 by three former members of the IDF's 8200 Unit. It has been developing cybersecurity products designed to prevent attacks and remote takeovers of all types of connected, software-based cars, including self-driving and electric vehicles. Based on decades of research in the cyber and automotive fields, it has filed for more than 80 patents, both approved and pending, and over time has become a leading supplier to automakers and Tier 1 companies.

The rationale behind PlaxidityX's developments is clear - as more and more vehicles connected to the Internet, essentially becoming "computers on wheels" with millions of lines of code, connectivity became a target for cyberattacks that potentially threaten lives and damage property. The architecture developed by the company encompasses theft prevention, in-vehicle intrusion detection and prevention, cloud-based fleet analytics, vulnerability management, and cybersecurity operations.

In 2017, PlaxidityX, then Argus, was sold to Continental of Germany, which manufactures and supplies tires and advanced automotive components. But it remained an independent, autonomous business unit with its own CEO. Today, the company is part of Aumovio, a Continental spin-off which went public last September on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. PlaxidityX currently employs 130 employees, most of whom are former members of special units of the Air Force and intelligence, alongside cybersecurity experts and researchers. It is headquartered in Israel, but has a global presence in several locations abroad, including the USA, Japan, Germany, France and Poland. The company will soon move to its new home in Herzliya.

Jacob Avidar (50) has been in his current position for two years. He is a senior engineering manager with over 20 years of experience in software development and architecture, ranging from startups to large organizations. He began his career in the Air Force, in the MMDS unit (now Ofek), where he developed fighter jet software and served as a system architect for the F15I aircraft. He says that working on critical systems with huge amounts of code always fascinated him, as well as underscoring the importance of meeting high standards in systems that affect human lives. Avidar subsequently held senior management and executive positions at Cisco, Teridion, Polyrize, and Lava Network, bringing a wealth of experience in cyber R&D to his current position.

Your Roadmap for the Years Ahead?
"Our vision is to protect all road travelers, vehicle users and their property. We identified a market with multiple 'pain points' and our products are currently installed in tens of millions of cars worldwide. We put manufacturers and vehicle owners within reach of the Holy Trinity: safety, data privacy protection, and compliance with regulatory requirements.

"However, the cat-and-mouse game between defenders and hackers will continue, and hackers will constantly look for new ways to attack. We will need to identify them and address them. The transportation environment will be saturated with connectivity - between vehicles, between vehicles and traffic lights and smart infrastructure, between vehicles and humans, and more. These advancements will only expand attack surfaces. Adding functionality and features to vehicles, in response to consumer demand, will also increase vehicles' exposure to cyberattacks. I am convinced that our company's innovation and creativity will allow us to deliver the right solutions for the new challenges ahead."

European Recognition for Israeli Innovation
PlaxidityX's vDome solution recently earned two major awards. It was selected as the Top SME Innovator in the Digital category of the 2025 CLEPA Innovation Awards - the European Association of Automotive Suppliers' innovation competition, which recognizes breakthrough developments in the automotive supply industry. The winners were chosen by a panel of expert judges who evaluated criteria such as ambition, market impact, implementation feasibility, and societal contribution. The company also won the "Audience Choice" award, granted by event participants during the ceremony held last month in Brussels.

Remember those old movies where car thieves would smash the window and hotwire crude wires to start the car and get away? Well, those cinematic plots are now history. In 2025, cars are stolen using sophisticated cyberattacks. Hackers download a fairly inexpensive, encrypted cyberattack tool (connector) from the dark web, and use it to target a weak point in the vehicle's shell - i.e., a headlight or rear bumper. A connected vehicle has many entry points, which can be used to access the vehicle's nervous system. By attaching the connector, the thief can feed malicious commands to disable security systems, unlock the doors and start the engine, all of which takes just a few seconds.

This is how thousands of cars are broken into around the world today, and the stolen vehicles - not to mention the burglars themselves - are never found, or not found in time. Everybody loses here - the vehicle owners first and foremost - but also car manufacturers, whose reputations are damaged, as well as insurance companies, some of which are already suffering financial losses and are no longer willing to insure "theft prone" vehicles. Premiums rise, naturally, while criminal organizations cheer.

To combat these sophisticated hacks, PlaxidityX (formerly Argus Cyber Security), a global leader in automotive cybersecurity, has developed its vDome solution. This groundbreaking solution, recently awarded the 2025 CLEPA Innovation Award (see below), is changing the rules of the game. Unlike tracking and recovery systems, vDome is designed to pre-empt and prevent keyless vehicle theft by monitoring and blocking theft attempts in real time.

"We were able to crack the hacking pattern and identify attack attempts before they could be carried out, effectively cyber-protecting the cars," says Jacob Avidar, VP of R&D and CISO at PlaxidityX. "By integrating directly into the vehicle network, vDome continuously monitors every command in real time, identifying and blocking keyless theft attempts as they occur. Within milliseconds, it detects the attempted theft and triggers an immediate preventive response, and all without any false alarms."

How does it work?
"When a command is received to open the car door or start the engine - we, unlike the manufacturers, know how to identify whether the command is valid or not.Keep in mind that hackers' tools are 'disguised' to create the impression of real events that require door opening or ignition, such as leaving the car with the mechanic. Our system knows how to identify this and prevent it."

The Amazing Tesla Experiment
One of the main advantages that Avidar points out is the option for installing vDome in existing vehicles. "We have revolutionized the market with a product classified as an 'aftermarket service'," he explains. "Typically, it takes two to three years for automakers to develop a new generation of cybersecurity solutions, and in the meantime vehicles already on the road remain vulnerable. We provide immediate protection, which is especially essential for vehicle owners who tend to pass on official software updates."

In this context, he reveals details of a groundbreaking experiment conducted by PlaxidityX. The company purchased a Tesla vehicle - considered one of the most technologically advanced vehicles with the most lines of code - for research and vulnerability testing purposes. The goal was an in-depth examination of possible targets for attack. After a series of complex experiments, the research team was able to hack the vehicle. PlaxidityX immediately contacted Tesla and reported the discovered cyber vulnerabilities, and the latter announced that it would take steps to correct the deficiencies. "We learned a lot from this experiment," says Avidar. "We learned vital lessons and built innovative models that can address all of the vulnerabilities we discovered during the study."

Connectivity Will Expand Attack Surfaces
PlaxidityX was founded in 2014 by three former members of the IDF's 8200 Unit. It has been developing cybersecurity products designed to prevent attacks and remote takeovers of all types of connected, software-based cars, including self-driving and electric vehicles. Based on decades of research in the cyber and automotive fields, it has filed for more than 80 patents, both approved and pending, and over time has become a leading supplier to automakers and Tier 1 companies.

The rationale behind PlaxidityX's developments is clear - as more and more vehicles connected to the Internet, essentially becoming "computers on wheels" with millions of lines of code, connectivity became a target for cyberattacks that potentially threaten lives and damage property. The architecture developed by the company encompasses theft prevention, in-vehicle intrusion detection and prevention, cloud-based fleet analytics, vulnerability management, and cybersecurity operations.

In 2017, PlaxidityX, then Argus, was sold to Continental of Germany, which manufactures and supplies tires and advanced automotive components. But it remained an independent, autonomous business unit with its own CEO. Today, the company is part of Aumovio, a Continental spin-off which went public last September on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. PlaxidityX currently employs 130 employees, most of whom are former members of special units of the Air Force and intelligence, alongside cybersecurity experts and researchers. It is headquartered in Israel, but has a global presence in several locations abroad, including the USA, Japan, Germany, France and Poland. The company will soon move to its new home in Herzliya.

Jacob Avidar (50) has been in his current position for two years. He is a senior engineering manager with over 20 years of experience in software development and architecture, ranging from startups to large organizations. He began his career in the Air Force, in the MMDS unit (now Ofek), where he developed fighter jet software and served as a system architect for the F15I aircraft. He says that working on critical systems with huge amounts of code always fascinated him, as well as underscoring the importance of meeting high standards in systems that affect human lives. Avidar subsequently held senior management and executive positions at Cisco, Teridion, Polyrize, and Lava Network, bringing a wealth of experience in cyber R&D to his current position.

Your Roadmap for the Years Ahead?
"Our vision is to protect all road travelers, vehicle users and their property. We identified a market with multiple 'pain points' and our products are currently installed in tens of millions of cars worldwide. We put manufacturers and vehicle owners within reach of the Holy Trinity: safety, data privacy protection, and compliance with regulatory requirements.

"However, the cat-and-mouse game between defenders and hackers will continue, and hackers will constantly look for new ways to attack. We will need to identify them and address them. The transportation environment will be saturated with connectivity - between vehicles, between vehicles and traffic lights and smart infrastructure, between vehicles and humans, and more. These advancements will only expand attack surfaces. Adding functionality and features to vehicles, in response to consumer demand, will also increase vehicles' exposure to cyberattacks. I am convinced that our company's innovation and creativity will allow us to deliver the right solutions for the new challenges ahead."

European Recognition for Israeli Innovation
PlaxidityX's vDome solution recently earned two major awards. It was selected as the Top SME Innovator in the Digital category of the 2025 CLEPA Innovation Awards - the European Association of Automotive Suppliers' innovation competition, which recognizes breakthrough developments in the automotive supply industry. The winners were chosen by a panel of expert judges who evaluated criteria such as ambition, market impact, implementation feasibility, and societal contribution. The company also won the "Audience Choice" award, granted by event participants during the ceremony held last month in Brussels.

In collaboration with PlaxidityX