Fuzzware.io researchers Tobias Scharnowski and Kristian Covic demonstrated at Black Hat USA 2026 an autonomous exploit chain that begins with a physical plug-in to a Tesla Universal Wall Connector and ends with control over EV chargers from two other vendors — all without operator input after the initial cable connection. The chain was found using rehosted charger firmware. Self-propagating behaviour across vendor boundaries makes the work a template for wormable attacks on charging infrastructure.

Australian angle

As Australia's EV charging network scales under state incentives, charger firmware becomes consumer-adjacent critical infrastructure, and the SOCI Act's expanded definitions capture elements of the charging ecosystem where it touches energy distribution.

Source

• iTnews — Tier 3/4, verified, 2026-08-22