Fiat Chrysler: Help Us Find Software Bugs

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles needs help finding bugs in its vehicles, and it's willing to pay for your expertise.

The automaker on Wednesday launched a bug country program on the Bugcrowd platform offering cold hard cash for information about security flaws in its vehicles and connected services. Fiat Chrysler is willing to pay $150 to $1,500 per bug, depending on its impact and severity.

The company said its goal with this new program is to "foster a collaborative relationship with researchers" and encourage the practice of responsible disclosure.

"There are a lot of people that like to tinker with their vehicles or tinker with IT systems," Titus Melnyk, senior manager of security architecture for Fiat Chrysler, said in a statement. "We want to encourage independent security researchers to reach out to us and share what they've found so that we can fix potential vulnerabilities before they're an issue for our consumers."

The program comes after security researchers Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek last year leveraged a flaw in Fiat Chrysler's Uconnect system to remotely hack a jeep, taking Wired writer Andy Greenberg on a once-in-a-lifetime thrill ride.

The move prompted Fiat Chrysler to recall 1.4 million US vehicles, and the car maker was, naturally, less than thrilled with the way the researchers disclosed the problem.

"Exposing or publicizing vulnerabilities for the singular purpose of grabbing headlines or fame does little to protect the consumer," Melnyk said this week. "Rather, we want to reward security researchers for the time and effort, which ultimately benefits us all."

Fiat Chrysler is, specifically, looking for bugs in its connected vehicles, including the systems within them and the external services and applications that interact with them. That includes the company's Uconnect apps for iOS and Android.

The company promised to "investigate legitimate reports and make every effort to correct any valid vulnerability as quickly as possible." White hat hackers can head over to Fiat Chrysler's Bugcrowd page for details of the new program.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade.

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes.

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app.

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth.

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light.

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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