Knowledge of connected cars is low among UK consumers, with only 4% saying they knew they owned one, and 66% saying they did not plan to buy one in future, despite the proliferation of the technology among new models.

96% of British drivers said they either didn’t own, or didn’t know if they owned, a connected car.

The research, carried out by Dutch cybersecurity firm Irdeto, surveyed 8,354 consumers in Canada, China, Japan, the United Kingdom and United States, and found similarly low awareness across all regions; of all the results, 93% said they either didn’t own, or didn’t know if they owned, a connected car.

The figure is slightly higher in the UK, standing at 96% of the respondents. British consumers were also among the most concerned about the security of connected cars (67%) compared to an average of 59% overall. A similar percentage (66%) of UK respondents said they were not interested in buying one in the future.

By comparison, recent government figures suggest that this is a significant area of growth; with connected and autonomous vehicles expected to account for 58% of the UK’s new vehicle sales by 2035.

Jaco Du Plooy, vice president of Cloakware, Irdeto, said: “Protection of only the vehicle itself is not enough. The entire connected vehicle ecosystem must be protected, including securing V2X communications so that data transferred between the vehicle and devices is secure. This is especially the case with self-driving vehicles. It is critical to implement a proper security strategy that includes protection for telematics devices in order to future-proof vehicles from being exploited.”For more of the latest industry news, click here.