Update integrity
Software Update Management and Secure Over-the-Air Delivery
At a glance
- Development
- Production
- Operations
- Updates
- Standards referenced
- UNECE R156ISO 24089ISO/SAE 21434
- Core deliverables
- SUMS process documentation
- Update security control specification
- Impact assessment procedure
- Delivery-path review findings
The problem we are asked to solve
- Update processes exist in engineering but are not documented as a managed system.
- Integrity and authenticity controls are inconsistent across ECUs.
- Update impact on safety and configuration is assessed informally.
- Field campaign evidence is difficult to reconstruct.
What changes as a result
- A documented software update management system
- Consistent integrity and authenticity controls across targets
- Impact assessment integrated into release decisions
- Traceable campaign records for regulatory and internal review
Scope of work
What the engagement covers
Scope is agreed per programme. These are the activities we most often deliver for this service.
- Software update management system (SUMS) definition
- Update process and role mapping
- Update integrity and authenticity controls
- Configuration and dependency management support
- Impact assessment method
- Backend and delivery-path security review
- Campaign evidence framework
- Supplier alignment for update responsibilities
Engagement methodology
How we work
A predictable sequence, adapted to your process and release gates rather than replacing them.
- 01
Map the current process
Trace how updates are built, approved, delivered, and confirmed today, including supplier contributions.
- 02
Define the management system
Document roles, decision points, and records so the process is reconstructable after the fact.
- 03
Review technical controls
Assess integrity, authenticity, rollback, configuration dependencies, and key lifecycle across targets.
- 04
Establish impact assessment
Set a repeatable method for judging safety, type-approval, and behavioural impact of a proposed update.
- 05
Prove the evidence chain
Run the process against a real or rehearsed campaign and confirm the records it produces are sufficient.
Deliverables
Every engagement ends with artefacts your organisation owns and can defend in review.
- SUMS process documentation
- Update security control specification
- Impact assessment procedure
- Delivery-path review findings
- Evidence and record framework
- Improvement roadmap
Relevant standards
We help organisations interpret and implement these requirements. We do not certify or approve organisations.
- UNECE R156
- ISO 24089
- ISO/SAE 21434
Typical use cases
- Preparing a software update management system for assessment
- Securing an over-the-air update path end to end
- Aligning update responsibilities with suppliers
- Reviewing update integrity for a new ECU generation
Evidence
Case studies covering SUMS and Secure Updates work are being prepared for publication. Automotive security engagements are normally confidential, so we discuss comparable scope, method, and deliverables directly rather than publishing unverifiable claims.
Questions
Frequently asked
Is this only relevant for over-the-air updates?
How does this relate to ISO 24089?
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