Kia Denies Being Hacked After Entire Connected-Car Network Collapses

“Affected systems include the Kia Owners Portal, UVO mobile apps, and the Consumer Affairs web portal,” Kia Motors America said in a statement, “We apologize for any inconvenience to affected customers and are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible with minimal interruption to our business.”

The outage is also affecting dealers, leaving them unable to order parts, order new cars for customers, or download software for vehicle service updates. Automotive News reports that two dealers told the publication that Kia’s KDealer communication system wasn’t working as of Saturday morning.

This is understandably a huge problem for Kia, which is one of the automakers at the forefront of connected car technology. However, the automaker is remaining tight-lipped about the cause of the outages as it, no doubt frantically, works to resolve the problem or problems.

There have been links on social media passed around claiming the outage is a result of a ransomware attack. We’re unable to confirm if those claims have any merit, and evidence put forward has only been in the form of screenshots. Kia has responded to the rumors, firmly stating: “We are also aware of online speculation that Kia is subject to a “ransomware” attack. At this time, we can confirm that we have no evidence that Kia or any Kia data is subject to a “ransomware” attack.”