The Maryland Online Data Privacy Act (MODPA) became law in 2024, and it goes into effect on October 1, 2025. Even if your dealership isn’t in Maryland, this law is worth watching—because it’s part of a bigger trend: states across the country are rolling out their own rules for how businesses collect, use, and protect … Read more
A June 26, 2025 Automotive News article revisits the devastating CDK cyberattacks that struck in mid-2024, shutting down access to dealership management systems for over 15,000 auto retailers. The breach paralyzed operations, forced dealers to revert to pen-and-paper processes, and resulted in an estimated 50,000 lost vehicle sales. Despite the $1 billion in revenue losses … Read more
The Automotive News article “Will dealerships heed the lessons learned from 2024 cyber attacks?” explores how the high-profile CDK Global data breach and cyber attacks became a wake-up call for the automotive retail industry. It highlights the growing urgency around dealership cybersecurity, emphasizing that proactive risk management—through cybersecurity monitoring, insurance, employee training, and vendor vetting—is … Read more
Cybercriminals have found a lucrative way to streamline their attacks and maximize their gains: by using Initial Access Brokers (IABs). These brokers specialize in gaining access to networks—like yours—and then selling that access to other cybercriminals. They’re essentially the middlemen of the cybercrime world, and their customers range from ransomware groups looking to cash in … Read more
The reputation of a dealership can be shattered in an instant. Cybersecurity incidents aren’t just technical problems—they’re ticking time bombs that can destroy a dealership’s hard-earned trust and goodwill with customers. Imagine your dealership’s name plastered across headlines, not for record sales, but for a data breach. Now, try to sell a car to a … Read more
To effectively protect your dealership from the cybercriminal, every employee must play a role. One of the most effective tactics within a comprehensive information security program is to fortify your defenses by creating a human firewall. The development of a human firewall is accomplished through an effective employee cybersecurity awareness training program. Such a program … Read more
To mitigate the risk of a successful, cyberattack, dealerships must address the most common sources of an attack—unpatched security vulnerabilities, human error, and malware. In this blog, we’re going to focus on the human error component. According to the Verizon 2023 Data Breach Investigation Report, nearly three-quarters of data breaches involve the actions of individuals … Read more
The FTC Safeguards Rule mandates that dealerships must “develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive information security program.” The Rule illustrates the FTC’s commitment to compelling businesses to establish an effective cyber defense to protect consumer information. However, many dealerships are simply concentrating their compliance efforts on isolated measures that alone fall short of constituting a … Read more
Dealerships face challenges when it comes to securely receiving customer files. Often, employees ask customers to send files via text, email, or other unsecured methods. This will violate the new FTC Safeguards Rule’s regulations regarding the secure transfer, storage, and restricted access of Personally Identifiable Information (PII). However, there’s an easy solution to this problem … Read more