Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology have exposed two weaknesses in the LIDAR ( light detection and ranging ) sensors used in autonomous vehicles . The team 's two proof of concept attacks comprised " blinding " a Velodyne VLP-16 LIDAR sensor with a saturation attack by capturing the sensor 's emitted light pulse and reflecting it back . The second test used refraction to change the apparent direction and distance of a point source , the attackers ' way of detecting objects . " Fake [ ing ] in directions other than the direction of the attacker can be a severe threat to the victim , " the team wrote .
Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology have exposed two weaknesses in the LIDAR (light detection and ranging) sensors used in autonomous vehicles. The team's two proof of concept attacks comprised "blinding" a Velodyne VLP-16 LIDAR sensor with a saturation attack by capturing the sensor's emitted laser pulse and sending it back. The second test used refraction to change the apparent direction and distance of a point cloud, the sensors' way of detecting objects. "Fake [points] in directions other than the direction of the attacker can be a severe threat to the victim," the team wrote.