Automotive Cyber security and Intrusion Detection Systems

Name: Automotive Cyber security and Intrusion Detection Systems
Rating: 4.3 (9 reviews)

Understand Communication Bus Attacks, IDS Design, and Automotive Security

Created byAniket Bansod

Last updated 2/2026

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Understand how modern vehicles evolved into software-defined, networked systems and why this evolution makes cybersecurity—and intrusion detection—essential.
Explain how the CAN bus works, including message structure, timing behavior, arbitration, and why CAN’s trust-based design is vulnerable to cyber attacks
Explain how the CAN bus works, including message structure, timing behavior, arbitration, and why CAN’s trust-based design is vulnerable to cyber attacks.
Identify and analyze common CAN attacks, such as message injection and denial-of-service (DoS), and understand how these attacks affect vehicle behavior.
Describe different IDS deployment models in vehicles, including host-based, network-based, gateway-based, and distributed IDS architectures.
Explain major IDS detection techniques, including signature-based, anomaly-based, and specification-based detection, and understand when each is appropriate.
Select and interpret CAN IDS features, such as identifier frequency, timing, jitter, payload ranges, and bus load, used to detect malicious behavior.
Design a basic CAN-based IDS architecture, translating a threat model into detection features and rules while respecting automotive safety constraints
Evaluate automotive IDS performance using practical metrics such as false positives, false negatives, detection latency, and resource usage.
Analyze real-world CAN attack case studies and understand how IDS detects attacks in practice without authentication or encryption.

Course content

6 sections • 23 lectures • 1h 58m total length

Evolution of Modern Vehicles5:49
In this lecture, we will understand how vehicles have evolved over time, and more importantly, why this evolution made cybersecurity a critical requirement in modern automobiles.
Why Cybersecurity Matters in Vehicles4:03
In this lecture, we will clearly understand what automotive cybersecurity is, why it is fundamentally different from traditional IT cybersecurity, and why vehicles require specialized security mechanisms.
Vehicle Attack Surfaces3:51
In this lecture, we will examine vehicle attack surfaces, meaning all possible points through which an attacker may gain access to vehicle systems.
IDS vs IPS in Automotive Systems4:10
In this lecture, we will clearly understand the difference between Intrusion Detection Systems, or IDS, and Intrusion Prevention Systems, or IPS, and how both are used in automotive environments.
Real-World Automotive Cyber Attacks3:56
In this lecture, we will discuss real-world automotive cyber attacks, why they are possible, and what lessons they teach us about vehicle security.
Why Traditional Security Is Not Enough3:02
In this lecture, we will understand why traditional security approaches are not sufficient for protecting modern vehicles, and why intrusion detection is required.
Automotive Cybersecurity Standards & Compliance2:47
In this lecture, we will discuss automotive cybersecurity standards and regulations, and understand why they are important for modern vehicles.

Introduction to In-Vehicle Networks5:01
In this lecture, we will introduce in-vehicle networks, understand why they are required, and explain how modern vehicles rely on networked communication between electronic control units.
This lecture is extremely important because all intrusion detection techniques in automotive systems are built on top of vehicle networks, especially the CAN bus.
CAN Bus Architecture4:52
In this lecture, we will study the architecture of the Controller Area Network, commonly known as the CAN bus.Understanding CAN architecture is essential because most automotive intrusion detection systems operate directly on CAN traffic.
CAN Frame Structure6:01
In this lecture, we will examine the structure of a CAN frame and understand how data is actually transmitted on the CAN bus.This lecture is extremely important because intrusion detection systems analyze CAN frames at the field level, not just at a high conceptual level.
CAN Communication Behavior & Vulnerabilities6:11
In this lecture, we will study how CAN communication behaves under normal conditions, and then analyze why these same behaviors introduce security vulnerabilities.This lecture is critical because most intrusion detection techniques rely on understanding what “normal” CAN behavior looks like before detecting abnormal or malicious activity.
CAN Attacks & CAN FD / CAN XL5:56
In this lecture, we will examine common attacks on the CAN bus, understand how attackers exploit CAN vulnerabilities, and then analyze modern CAN extensions such as CAN FD and CAN XL from a security perspective.This lecture is critical because it shows how theoretical weaknesses translate into real-world attacks, and why intrusion detection remains necessary even with newer protocols.

Introduction to Intrusion Detection Systems4:21
In this lecture, we will introduce the concept of Intrusion Detection Systems, understand what an intrusion means, and explain why intrusion detection is essential in modern automotive systems.
By the end of this lecture, you will clearly understand what an IDS does, what it does not do, and where it fits in a vehicle’s security architecture.
IDS vs IPS & Automotive Security Philosophy4:57
In this lecture, we will compare Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS), understand their fundamental differences, and explain why automotive systems strongly favor detection over prevention.
By the end of this lecture, you will understand the automotive security philosophy that prioritizes safety, predictability, and controlled response over aggressive blocking.
IDS Deployment Models in Automotive Systems5:54
In this lecture, we will explore where intrusion detection systems can be deployed inside automotive systems, understand different IDS deployment models, and analyze how placement affects visibility, latency, and effectiveness.
By the end of this lecture, you will be able to clearly explain why IDS placement is a critical design decision in modern vehicles.
IDS Detection Techniques (Taxonomy)6:10
In this lecture, we will study the main detection techniques used by Intrusion Detection Systems, also known as IDS taxonomy.
We will explain signature-based, anomaly-based, and specification-based detection approaches, compare their strengths and limitations, and understand why automotive systems often use a combination of these techniques.

Threat Model & Attack Surface for CAN IDS6:16
In this lecture, we will define the threat model for CAN-based intrusion detection systems, identify the attack surface of in-vehicle networks, and understand attacker capabilities and assumptions.
By the end of this lecture, you will be able to explain what IDS is protecting against, from whom, and why this directly influences IDS design choices.
CAN IDS Features & Detection Techniques6:43
In this lecture, we will examine the features extracted from CAN traffic for intrusion detection and understand how these features are used by different detection techniques.
By the end of this lecture, you will clearly understand what data CAN-based IDS analyzes, why these features are effective, and how detection logic is constructed in real automotive systems.
IDS Alerts, Responses & Safety Considerations5:39
In this lecture, we will examine how intrusion detection systems generate alerts, how those alerts are handled and acted upon, and why safety considerations dominate all IDS response decisions in automotive systems.
By the end of this lecture, you will understand why detection alone is not enough, how IDS integrates with vehicle and backend systems, and why careless responses can be more dangerous than the attack itself.

Designing a CAN-Based IDS6:10
In this lecture, we will walk through the design process of a CAN-based intrusion detection system, understand key architectural decisions, and analyze the trade-offs involved in real automotive environments.
By the end of this lecture, you will be able to think like an automotive IDS designer, not just a consumer of IDS techniques.
Evaluating Automotive IDS6:25
In this lecture, we will study how automotive intrusion detection systems are evaluated, understand key performance metrics, and analyze the trade-offs between detection accuracy, false positives, latency, and resource usage.
By the end of this lecture, you will be able to critically assess an IDS design, rather than assuming that more detection always means better security.
Case Studies: CAN Injection & DoS Attacks6:22
In this lecture, we will analyze two realistic attack case studies on the CAN bus:
CAN message injection and Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks.
By the end of this lecture, you will be able to mentally simulate how a CAN-based IDS works during a real attack.

Requirements

Basic understanding of how vehicles or embedded systems work
Familiarity with general networking concepts
Interest in automotive systems or cybersecurity
A computer or tablet with internet access
No software installation required

Description

Automotive Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS): Securing CAN Networks

Modern vehicles are no longer just mechanical machines. They are software-defined, networked systems that rely heavily on in-vehicle communication networks to operate safely and efficiently. With this transformation comes a growing cybersecurity risk, especially on in-vehicle networks such as the Controller Area Network (CAN), which was originally designed without security in mind.

This course provides a clear, practical, and industry-aligned introduction to Automotive Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), with a strong focus on CAN-based vehicle architectures. It explains not only how attacks occur, but also how real automotive systems detect malicious behavior while respecting strict safety and real-time constraints.

Unlike many academic or tool-focused courses, this course teaches how automotive security engineers actually think and work. You will not just learn what an IDS is. You will understand why detection is preferred over prevention in vehicles, how attacks manifest in CAN traffic, and how IDS solutions are realistically designed, evaluated, and deployed in production environments.

In this course, you will learn how modern vehicles evolved into networked systems, how CAN communication works and why it is vulnerable, and how common CAN attacks such as message injection and denial of service affect vehicle behavior. You will also explore IDS concepts, deployment models, detection techniques, and real-world case studies that demonstrate how CAN-based IDS works in practice.

This course is concept-driven, safety-aware, and vendor-neutral, making it ideal for learners who want long-term, transferable automotive cybersecurity knowledge applicable to real engineering roles.

Who this course is for:

Basic technical curiosity is enough. All concepts are explained from the ground up.
Students and beginners entering automotive cybersecurity
Automotive and embedded engineers transitioning into security
Cybersecurity professionals new to the automotive domain
No prior automotive cybersecurity experience is required

Automotive Cyber security and Intrusion Detection Systems

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Course content

Introduction7 lectures • 28min

In-Vehicle Networks & CAN5 lectures • 28min

Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) – Concepts & Taxonomy4 lectures • 21min

CAN-Based IDS Techniques3 lectures • 19min

IDS Design, Evaluation & Case Studies3 lectures • 19min

Course Wrap-Up1 lecture • 4min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: