Dealership Cybersecurity News: What Happened This Month
Auto dealership cybersecurity news for October 2026: a German dealer software breach, an exploited VPN flaw, a record Microsoft patch month, and what to check.
Scot McConnor
DMS Outage Plan: How to Keep Selling and Servicing When the DMS Goes Down
A DMS outage plan keeps your dealership selling, servicing, and paying people on paper. What to print, payroll and parts workarounds, and who makes the call.
Microsoft Copilot at the Dealership: What to Lock Down Before You Turn It On
Microsoft 365 Copilot security comes down to permissions, because Copilot can show each employee anything that employee can already open in SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, and Outlook, including pay plans and deal files. Lock that access down before you turn it on. The request usually shows up as one line in an email. “Can you get … Read more
AI Governance for Dealerships: Shadow AI, Data Exposure and What to Do Next
AI governance for dealerships, explained: where shadow AI exposes customer data, and how a board, a written policy, and a governed AI platform put it in check.
Does the FTC Safeguards Rule Apply to Heavy Truck Dealerships?
Does the FTC Safeguards Rule apply to truck dealerships that sell to businesses? Yes, with limits. See what commercial credit changes and what applies anyway.
AI Phone Agents for Dealerships: A Security and Consent Checklist
An AI receptionist for car dealerships touches customer data, call recordings, and consent law. Use this 14-item security and consent checklist before you sign.
Mercedes-Benz Dealer ISO 27001 / TISAX Requirement: What Now That the Deadline Has Passed
The Mercedes-Benz dealer ISO 27001 or TISAX Level 2 date of September 30, 2026 has passed, and the factory now also accepts the CIS Critical Security Controls. What a store does next depends on whether it’s certified, mid-audit, or hasn’t started. Mercedes-Benz USA’s guidelines for dealers aren’t published, so check the wording in your own … Read more
FTC Safeguards Rule Breach Notification: What Dealers Must Report Within 30 Days
The FTC Safeguards Rule notification requirement gives a dealership 30 days from discovery to report a breach to the FTC when unencrypted customer information on 500 or more consumers is acquired without authorization. It’s been in force since May 13, 2024. Day one of a breach, nobody at the store is thinking about a federal … Read more
Heavy Truck Dealership Cybersecurity: Lessons From the Motility DMS Breach
The Motility breach proved that a truck dealer’s DMS vendor is part of the dealer’s own attack surface. Ransomware hit the Reynolds-owned dealer software provider in August 2025, exposed data on 766,670 people, and ended in a $4.95 million class settlement. Picture the letter. It isn’t from a hacker. It’s from your software company, and … Read more