Thales to enhance vehicle access with reliable and secure contactless solutions

• Car industry players can rely on Thales to provide digital and physical solutions that improve car access experiences, while ensuring data security.
• Thales’s offer encompasses a digital car key solution, whose implementation follows the Car Connectivity Consortium¹ (CCC) standard. It is now completed by a brand-new contactless card, the Thales NFC CARd Key. The solutions enable car drivers to lock/unlock and start their vehicles using their smartphone or their card.
• Drawing on its 15+ years of experience in the automotive industry, Thales delivers proven on-board car solutions leveraging its connectivity and cybersecurity expertise.

Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies, provides car manufacturers with safe and hassle-free solutions to expand their customers’ vehicle access experiences. The offer leverages the digital car key solution and the smart NFC CARd Key, a new cutting-edge and customisable solution. Designed to complement the digital key, this innovative NFC-based card offers a reliable alternative in the event of disruptions on users’ smartphones, and allows drivers to unlock and start their cars with a simple ‘tap’. ​

The automotive industry is rapidly shifting from traditional to digital solutions, and the digital car key market is expected to grow at an impressive annual rate of over 21% from 2023 to 2031². Thales is addressing this growing demand, leveraging the CCC digital key functionality, demonstrating strong cybersecurity expertise into digital car key solution and securely creating and storing credentials in a vehicle, in a mobile device and/or in a contactless card.

After digitally enrolling drivers’ credentials upon the purchase of a car, Thales’s digital car key system securely allows drivers to enter and start the vehicle using their smartphone, while the mobile device is still in the pocket or in the bag. Such flexible solutions enable a wide range of automotive use cases, making car access and sharing significantly easier. Private car owners can digitally share their access with family members or friends, while car rental firms can do the same with customers, physically removing the need to pick up car keys at a rental desk. Meanwhile, the introduction of Thales’s NFC CARd Key perfectly supports scenarios when a smartphone might not be available.

Functioning like a contactless payment card, the NFC CARd Key establishes secure, encrypted communication with the vehicle, allowing instant access and engine start, just like the mobile app. With over 10 years of durability in the field, and a strong resistance to high temperatures, it ensures robust protection, while enabling a smooth and simple ‘tap-enter-and-go’ experience. Beyond its technical features, the NFC CARd Key presents a valuable branding opportunity for automotive manufacturers, as its design can be customised, creating a unique and singular card thanks to Thales's wide range of printing options (3D effect, tactile varnish, etc.).

“Thales brings over 15 years of experience in delivering connectivity and cybersecurity solutions to the automotive industry, with a deep understanding of customer requirements, from daily usage conditions to compliance with stringent standards. This extends to data security expertise in vehicles and mobile devices, providing peace of mind through a robust and resilient approach to cybersecurity,” stated Christine Caviglioli, VP Automotive at Thales. “With the launch of the NFC CARd Key, Thales complements its vehicle access offer with a singular innovation. Our ambition is to empower automakers and drivers alike with a flexible approach to secure mobility.”

¹ _{The Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), an organisation that promotes seamless smartphone-to-car connectivity, has set the standard for digital car keys, enabling drivers to unlock and start their vehicles using smartphones or smartwatches. ​}

² _{According to Transparency Market Research.}