McLaren Formula One driver Kimi Raikkonen makes a living by trusting his life to technology. During a race last season, the Finn was warned by his support team there had been a serious accident up ahead. One of the cars in front had exploded in a crash, blocking part of the road with burning debris. To add to the fun, an oil leak had caused a thick, smoky fire that was impossible to see through.
After warning their driver of the wreck ahead, Raikkonen's support team waited for the in-car telemetry to report their man was preparing to brake in the zero-visibility conditions. But nothing happened. Instead, the driver known as the Ice Man calmly enquired over his helmet intercom which side of the road the crash was on. After being told the left, Raikkonen banked hard to the right and thrashed his McLaren clear of danger. Later analysis revealed his speed and heart rate didn't change one iota throughout.
Accurate information is obviously crucial to drivers on Grand Prix day but it's also the competitive edge which the racing whole team relies on. Maintaining the integrity and secrecy of its data is crucially important to a top Formula One team like McLaren Mercedes.
The team's headquarters in Surrey, the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC), looks a James Bond villain's secret lair – and has a similar approach to security. Designed by Sir Norman Foster, the architect behind London's gherkin-shaped Swiss Re building, the MTC's glass facade oozes sophistication and style.
But while its HQ may be transparent, McLaren's approach to security is anything but. For any racing team, having the best technology can mean the difference between a shower of champagne and a dejected cuppa in the team caravan. The information riding on that technology has to be a closely guarded secret but available at all times to team members.
Constant vigilance is necessary to protect data from industrial espionage – including spies for rival teams who use long-lens cameras to photograph time sheets and car parts. Even rubbish is a security risk.
"Waste management is very important," said Jonathan Neale, CEO of McLaren. "If you leave oily rags in the pit, it doesn't take much to analyse the type of fuel you are using. Data security is important for us because lots of people in the world like to get hold of it. If you look at our business, it's not hard to see how people take data around. We've got engineers who take laptops around the world with them. And only two years ago, Renault reported being hacked into and having their data stolen."
Formula One espionage is an old concept – Neale even admits to having his own team of sneaky photographers - but as technology has evolved, the means of stealing data have too. This year, McLaren has seen the number of malware attacks against its company nearly double. In 2003, it received an average of 80 email viruses a day, but that number has increased to 150 a day in 2004.
