How Cars Being Stolen With Keyless Entry Transformed My Life For The Better
How Cars Being Stolen With Keyless Entry Transformed My Life For The Better
Blog Article
Cars Being Stolen With Keyless Entry
Car owners who leave keys on tables or near their front door could be allowing thieves to hijack the signal. This relay attack is a high-tech method criminals use to steal new keyless vehicles.
Keyless ignition vehicles emit a low-power radio signal that is used to locate a matching fob. If the signal is recorded and recreated, it could be used to unlock the car and begin it up.
Relay Attack
Imagine your car safely parked in the driveway, with the key fob tucked away inside your home. You're confident that your car is secure, but unseen by you sophisticated thieves are planning a heist. Instead of slamming windows and jiggling locks, thieves are using technology to hack into vehicles using digital cracks in their armor. Known as relay theft, it's a more popular method of stealing cars with keyless entry.
Cars with keyless entry are designed to operate using an electronic signal that is transmitted from the car's remote control (RF) transmitter to the owner's key fob. To ensure that keyless entry is not accessed by intruders the RF transmitters that are on the key fob as well as the car are programmed only to be activated when they are within a certain distance from each other. However, thieves can overcome this limitation using an attack known as the'relay attack'.
Two individuals are required to perform this: one person stands close to the car and uses a device that captures digitally the signal coming from the key fob. The other person, who is at the home of the owner, uses a second gadget to transmit the signal from the key fob back to the car. This trickery fools the car into believing that the key fob has traveled an adequate distance to unlock and start the vehicle.
This type of attack used to require expensive equipment. You can now buy a cheap relay transmitter on the internet and complete a heist within minutes. This is the reason it's popular with car thieves.
While some cars are less prone to this kind of theft than others, all modern vehicles that have keyless entry are vulnerable. In fact researchers have tested 237 popular cars and found that they could be all stolen using this method.
Tesla cars are said to be less prone to this kind of theft, but the company hasn't yet implemented UWB features to effectively conduct distance checks on the car's signal to stop relay attacks. The company has promised to implement this feature in the near future, but for now they are vulnerable. Installing an anti-theft system that guards your car and your keys against such a threat is a proactive approach to ensure your car's security.
CAN Injection Attack
Modern cars can guard themselves from thieves by exchanging encrypted messages with the key in order to confirm its authenticity. This system is generally reckoned to be secure, but thieves have found a way around it. They fake the identity of the smart key, then send messages to the vehicle, and then drive away. To do that they have access to the smart key's internal communications network.
These days, most cars are equipped with between 20 to 200 electronic control units (or ECUs) which control different aspects of the car's operation. They communicate with each other using an electronic network referred to as CAN bus. To ensure that power consumption is low, these ECUs go into a low-power sleep mode that's activated when they receive a 'wake up' frame. These frames are typically sent by the ECU that is in charge of the smart key or door. These messages are not always authenticated or encrypted. This means that criminals can take them over with an inexpensive and simple device.
They search for a location that allows them to connect directly to the wires of the CAN connection. They usually are hidden in the headlights, or in other locations in the front of the vehicle. To gain access to them, you need to remove the bumper and make holes in the headlamp assemblies. The criminals then use a device called an CAN injection attacker to send fake messages that fool the security systems of the car to unlock it and disable its engine immobilizer.
These devices can be bought on the Dark Web and work with most major car manufacturers, including BMW and Cadillac, Chrysler, Fiat and Ford, Honda, Hyundai and Jeep, Lexus and Nissan, Renault and Toyota, Volkswagen and Maserati. Researchers who discovered the CAN Injection attack recommend that all car makers fix this issue in their existing models. However, these thieves will continue to steal any opportunity they can. We can stop this from happening by implementing mechanical safety measures such as Discloks in all of our cars and parking them in well-lit, well-lit areas.
Blocking the Signal
In a variation of the relay attack that makes use of a device that is able to block the signal transmitted by key fobs while the car is locked. The device could be in the pocket or hiding where a burglar is hiding on an open parking lot or near the driveway that is being targeted. Once the owners hit the lock button on their fobs and leave, they don't think about whether or not the car is actually locks. Instead, thieves are able to drive off with the vehicle since the signal that normally locks the car is blocked by the crook's device.
The crooks also employ devices to amplify the key fob's signals in order to unlock vehicles. They can do this when the key is in the driver's pocket or hanging from its hook in the house. After the car is unlocked, hackers can make use of the standard diagnostic port to program an unlocked fob.
Car manufacturers have come up with a range of anti-theft systems to protect against these types of attacks. But, thieves are constantly looking for ways to defeat these measures.
For instance, they've been using devices that transmit on the same radio frequency as remote key fobs in order to intercept their signals. The thieves copy the unlock code of the key fob and begin the vehicle using this fake signal.
This technique is especially popular in the US and Europe where many automobiles are sold with wireless technology that allows owners to unlock and start their cars using a mobile app on their phone. This technology is likely to become more popular as more and more car manufacturers attempt to connect their vehicles to owners' smartphones.
It is important that drivers follow the best practices when parking their vehicles. They shouldn't leave their key fobs in the ignition. They should always ensure that their vehicle is locked completely when they're not using it and should make use of a steering wheel or gearstick lock if possible. They should also think about fitting a tracking device to their vehicle in case it's stolen.
Flat Battery
This type of attack occurs more often than people realize. The thieves make use of cheap devices that extend the signal of your key fob to enable it to unlock and start your car, even in the event that it is off. Then they drive the car to a trailer or around a corner, and take the car away. It is possible to shield your vehicle from this by installing a starter circuit interrupt switch. The simplest ones just have an ON/OFF switch that interrupts the starter circuit. It is priced at around $15 and is simple to install.
Car thieves are always working on new ways to get into vehicles and then steal them. The police as well as car manufacturers and insurance companies are always trying to catch up to their tactics and develop better anti-theft systems for the latest cars. But this isn't stopping thieves who be quick to adapt and find ways to circumvent the most recent anti-theft measures.
Many thieves block the signal with devices that operate on the same radio frequency of the fob. The device is placed in the pocket or near the vehicle, and stops the fob from sending the lock command to the car. This can be done in seconds. The device is inexpensive and readily available online.
Hacking the computer system of the car is an alternative option. This is more difficult but still feasible. Every car has a diagnostic port, and hackers have created devices that car stolen with keys in it progressive connect to them and let them access the car's software. From there, they can program the blank key fob to get it to work. It is also possible to do this on older cars, although it is more difficult without removal of the ignition lock.
As more vehicles are linked to smartphones of drivers and this method could become more popular as well. Once a thief has access to the username and password to a vehicle application and is able to unlock or start the vehicle with the app. You can protect yourself by not putting valuables in your car and also by parking in garages.