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A research partnership focused on Automotive Cyber Security Research has been set up by global information assurance specialist NCC Group and WMG, at the University of Warwick.

The research partnership will make use of WMG's world-leading expertise in technology innovation, focusing on high-impact research and collaborative security projects with the automotive industry.

NCC Group will sponsor a number of PhD students to carry out their studies, focusing on cutting-edge research in the field of automotive cyber security.

The Group's own automotive specialists will be providing support to the students and actively engaging on the collaborative industry projects.

Most modern cars run software and have embedded systems that are connected to each other, which has made the car a major target for cyber criminals. The potential and realities of 'car hacking' are regularly making the headlines, with the automotive industry currently playing catch up in an attempt to improve the security of the systems that are currently used.

Four students from the WMG Academy for Young Engineers, based in Coventry, enjoyed a trip to Westminster on Wednesday 26th November to watch Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons.

Miranda Bishop-Timings, Ethan Harries, Hannah Miles and Sophie Sutton won the Y12 Debating Competition run by Coventry City Council as part of Local Democracy week.

Professor Lord Bhattacharyya, Chairman of WMG said:

It’s wonderful to see the young students from the WMG Academy for Young Engineers making an impact through debating. I organised a tour of the House of Lords as part of their visit to London and I hope this will have filled them with enthusiasm for their next competition.”

The debating competition took place on Friday 17th October where the team had to debate the following motion:
“This House would introduce an age limit of 18 for mobile phones”

At an event, earlier this week, Professor Irene Ng announced registration for the HAT personal data platform (HATPDP), which allows individuals to collect, use, share and trade their own data amongst themselves and with firms, will be open for people in the UK, giving them the opportunity to become the world's first 1 million HAT beta users.

In 2015, the HAT will first be launched in the Midlands and then later in the year in Singapore. The HATPDP was demonstrated for the first time at the 2nd Mad Hatters' Tea Party in London's Digital Catapult, with the release of the technical specification of the HAT APIs for developers and firms to build applications and devices around the use of personal data. The event also saw the release of the economic model of the HAT ecosystem, and new potential business models for the use of personal data of the future.

Announcing the HAT project's collaboration with Enable iD, to become the first HAT Platform Provider (HPP) in Europe, Professor Irene Ng, Director of the International Institute for Product and Service Innovation at WMG, University of Warwick and the Lead Investigator of the HAT project said:

We are very pleased to be working with Enable iD to scale up the HAT. We believe that the next stage of the Internet is that of data-driven human decisions enabled by the Internet of Things and data intensive services and we are really pleased that it will begin in the Midlands, the birthplace of the industrial revolution. We think the HAT will create an economic system that is more democratic in terms of data exchanges as well as incentivising more innovation, business opportunities and will create a whole new economy with new jobs and skills”.

"That Russian websites have hacked cameras comes as no surprise" - Prof Carsten Maple

Prof Carsten Maple, Professor of Cyber Systems Engineering at the Cyber Security Centre at WMG/University of Warwick, has provided expert analysis following the news that Russian websites have hacked cameras and are streaming live video feeds:

"The news that Russian websites have hacked cameras and are streaming live video feeds comes as no surprise. The ability to exploit and remotely access webcams has been around for many years. We live in an increasingly open society where viewing of reality shows is commonplace across the globe and this is an extension of that. Unfortunately, vulnerabilities in systems have allowed people access to your camera that you certainly would not want to have. We need to ensure that users regularly update software and operating systems to ensure that any flaws are patched. Equally it is important that good passwords are used rather than remaining with default settings on computer systems."

Professor Lord Bhattacharyya welcomed the Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP to WMG’s International Manufacturing Centre where he hosted an industrial roundtable.

Invited regional SMEs and representatives from Jaguar Land Rover attended the roundtable where Mr Miliband was keen to hear first-hand the challenges that both SMEs and global companies face and what they saw as the opportunities for manufacturing in the West Midlands region. Also taking part in the discussions were Shabana Mahmood MP, Shadow Minister for Treasury, and Liam Byrne MP, Shadow Minister for Universities, Science and Skills.

Professor Lord Bhattacharyya, Chairman of WMG, welcomed Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, Shadow Home Secretary, and David Jamieson, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner to the International Manufacturing Centre on Friday 14^th November.

Ms Cooper and Mr Jamieson met with Professor Tim Watson, Director of the WMG Cyber Security Centre, and discussed how current and future technology can help the police to tackle a variety of cybercrimes and what impact this could have on police resources. Professor Watson also highlighted the expertise within the Cyber Security Centre and the work they do to help protect people within the cyber–physical environment. The visit included a simulated hacking incident, which demonstrated the techniques used by cyber criminals and the effects that this type of crime can have on their victims.

On Thursday 6th November, Dr Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), was welcomed to campus by Professor Lord Bhattacharyya (Chairman of WMG) along with Dr Gerhard Schmidt (Chairman) and Tony Pixton (CEO) of the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK, Professor Stuart Croft (Provost of the University of Warwick) and Jerry Hardcastle (Chair of the Automotive Council Technology Group).

Dr Cable was visiting to officially launch the new Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) Hub which is based on the University of Warwick campus. The APC helps forge partnerships between those who have good ideas and those who can bring them to market. The services provided by the APC enable projects which provide profitable growth and sustainable opportunities for the partners involved and contribute to the UK’s economic prosperity.

Read the APC's Press Release on the Launch: Vince Cable opens £1billion centre for cleaner greener vehicles

Developers will be invited to be amongst the first to view technology to help support the next phase of the Internet's evolution when the Hub-of-All-Things (HAT) platform is revealed at a “Mad Hatters' Tea Party” later this month.

Professor Irene Ng, from WMG at the University of Warwick, will announce this forthcoming opportunity while speaking at the Innovate UK event in London on Wednesday 5th November.

The 2nd Mad Hatters' Tea Party on November 24, 2014 will be demonstrating the HAT, a technology and market platform for individuals to collect, use, share and trade their own data amongst themselves and with firms.

The event, hosted by the Connected Digital Economy Catapult at its new Digital Catapult Centre in London, will mark the first round release of the inbound and outbound APIs of the HAT with the aim of helping developers and firms prepare themselves to participate in the next wave of the Internet – an internet of data-driven decisions, empowering individuals to make smarter decisions in their day to day lives.

The HAT enables individuals to reclaim and control their own data for their personal use. Crucially, this digital data repository is owned by the individual and preserves their privacy. This is particularly important in today's increasingly connected world, where much of our lives is being captured digitally as data, giving rise to concerns about security, privacy, confidentiality and trust.

WMG Founder and Chairman, Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, has been recognised by Lord Kenneth Baker for his significant contribution to professional education in the UK.

In his comments made during a House of Lords debate on improved vocational alternatives for young people, Lord Baker said:

Through the Warwick Manufacturing Group, [Lord Bhattacharyya] has driven forward the reputation of Warwick University to become one of the best universities in the world. He has also supported, I am glad to say, the university technical college [WMG Academy for Young Engineers] opened only last month…His personal contribution in the whole scale of technical education is quite remarkable.”

See video: Parliament TV

University of Warwick student Dan Beddow is one of 18 talented graduates and students from across the West Midlands region who have just helped local Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) with a variety of industry challenges thanks to a scheme run by the ERDF funded International Institute for Product and Service Innovation (IIPSI) at WMG at the University of Warwick.

SMEs in the West Midlands region benefitted from a funded internship programme to support innovative projects in their businesses. Projects included the development of digital marketing strategies, development of new technical services, implementation of new product lines, materials testing and product design.

One of the SMEs to benefit was Rugby’s Automotive Insulations Ltd (AI Ltd), specialists in the design and manufacture of innovative noise reduction systems and thermal management solutions. They took on two interns, Dan Beddow, an Engineering student from the University of Warwick, who lives in Coventry’s Tile Hill area, and Sarah McDougall a Chemistry student from the University of Central Lancashire. Sarah spent time testing the viability of a number of new materials ready to go into production and Dan worked on an exhibition demonstrator project for the IZB exhibition in Germany resulting in a cut away of a MINI Cooper that showcased all of AI’s products in one vehicle and an innovative touch screen system for visitors at the exhibition to use.