In the Wards Automotive article “Steering Clear of Cyberthreats,” cybersecurity expert Erik Nachbahr of Helion Technologies warns that many dealerships are underestimating the complexity and cost of dealership cybersecurity. While IT staff keep systems running, cybersecurity requires specialized skills—and expecting in-house IT teams to manage both roles can lead to serious risk. The article references alarming statistics from Botdoc’s 2025 Auto Dealership Cybersecurity Survey, including that nearly 20% of dealerships have suffered cyberattacks, and over 40% don’t even know if they’ve been breached. Nachbahr outlines common pitfalls—such as piecing together mismatched tools, neglecting employee offboarding, and overspending on SaaS licenses—and emphasizes the need for a unified, proactive security strategy. As cyber threats continue to grow, the article makes clear: dealership cybersecurity must be treated as a business-critical priority.
Wards Automotive Highlights Dealership Cybersecurity Challenges in “Steering Clear of Cyberthreats”
About the author
Erik Nachbahr
Founder & President, Helion Technologies
Erik Nachbahr founded Helion Technologies in 1997 and has spent nearly 30 years working exclusively with automotive and heavy truck dealerships. Helion now supports more than 2,000 dealerships and 35,000 end users with managed IT, cybersecurity, FTC Safeguards compliance, Tekion enablement, and managed AI, all under one team. A CISSP, Erik writes and speaks about the parts of dealership technology most operators inherit rather than choose: vendor sprawl, AI governance, and cyber risk. His goal is simple: make the technology work so dealerships can focus on what they do best, selling and servicing cars and heavy trucks.
Confidence in your current setup and actual protection aren't always the same thing. The only way to know which one you have is to look.
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