From boingboing.net:"$17 radio amp lets thieves steal Priuses"

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › From boingboing.net:"$17 radio amp lets thieves steal Priuses"

kingdragonfly

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#172016 8-May-2015 12:52

An article discussing a radio amplifier used to steal cars

http://boingboing.net/2015/04/16/17-radio-amp-lets-thieves-ste.html

"If your car has a proximity-based ignition fob that lets you start the engine without inserting a key, thieves on the street in front of your house can use an amp to detect its signal from your house and relay it to the car, getting away clean.

The amps are pocket-sized, battery powered and cost as little as $17 on Ebay and Amazon.

Mr. Danev said that when the teenage girl turned on her device, it amplified the distance that the car can search, which then allowed my car to talk to my key, which happened to be sitting about 50 feet away, on the kitchen counter. And just like that, open sesame.

'It’s a bit like a loudspeaker, so when you say hello over it, people who are 100 meters away can hear the word, "hello,"' Mr. Danev said. 'You can buy these devices anywhere for under $100.' He said some of the lower-range devices cost as little as $17 and can be bought online on sites like eBay, Amazon and Craigslist."

kingdragonfly

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#1300653 8-May-2015 13:07

Obviously to defeat radio amplifier, all you need is to put your car keys in a "Faraday cage"

The refrigerator is one, or better is a small metal box made out of something conductive like copper mesh.

http://www.wovenwire.com/reference/faraday-cage-copper-shielding.htm

wellygary

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#1300660 8-May-2015 13:24

Although before everyone gets totally paranoid, you have got to ask how many people are actually impacted by this...

Our car is a 2013 Toyota and still requires a key to turn the ignition ( although its the fob thats doing all the security work), My folks bought 2 new cars in 2014 and both required keys to start the car....

How many cars are actually sold with fob that automatically unlock the door (and lock when you walk away) and then have a simple push button to start the car?

benokobi

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#1300686 8-May-2015 13:51

My mother's focus titanium and my dad's jeep grand Cherokee and my grandfather's e class all have push button starts with auto unlock.

wasabi2k

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#1300688 8-May-2015 13:54

wellygary: How many cars are actually sold with fob that automatically unlock the door (and lock when you walk away) and then have a simple push button to start the car?

Lots.

My 2011 outlander does this.

kiwitrc

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#1300704 8-May-2015 14:15

Why would anyone want to steal a Prius?

scottjpalmer

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#1300720 8-May-2015 14:33

How far do they get before the car shuts down because the key isn't present?

RunningMan

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#1300722 8-May-2015 14:35

Is Priuses actually the plural of Prius?

Maybe it's Prii

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xpd

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#1300741 8-May-2015 14:45

Our 2004 Nissan Wingroad had a card for unlocking and you started the car by just turning a "knob" where the key would go. If the car would go far without it I dont know, never tried :) Think it would allow you to drive tho as it was just more for authentication, rather than a true proximity control.

So once "authenticated", you could open/close doors and start the car.

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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dolsen

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#1300742 8-May-2015 14:46

wasabi2k:
wellygary: How many cars are actually sold with fob that automatically unlock the door (and lock when you walk away) and then have a simple push button to start the car?

Lots.

My 2011 outlander does this.

As does my 2009 Vanguard (and 2007 models do as well). The car does not shut-down if you drive without the keys inside it, however, you won't be able to restart it once you turn it off.

maxeon

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#1300795 8-May-2015 15:08

My Ford Kuga Titanium has Proximity Lock / Unlock and Start / Stop engine.
You need to have the key inside the car before you can start / stop the engine.

I have driven it down the drive way once without the key and it started to annoy me but did not stop me from driving.

sbiddle

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#1300833 8-May-2015 16:02

scottjpalmer: How far do they get before the car shuts down because the key isn't present?

People aren't using this to steal cars - they're using it to steal goods from cars.

I'm actually in the US at present and ironically just watched a story on the news showing video footage of two vehicles including a late model Audi having their contents stolen using this method.

It's a huge problem, but it seems right now nobody wants to make a big story of it, because it really is a truly massive security problem. I'd love to know what the view is of NZ insurance companies if contents are stolen from a locked car using this method, particularly as there won't be any signs of forced entry.

Fred99

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#1301095 9-May-2015 10:26

sbiddle:
scottjpalmer: How far do they get before the car shuts down because the key isn't present?

People aren't using this to steal cars - they're using it to steal goods from cars.

I'm actually in the US at present and ironically just watched a story on the news showing video footage of two vehicles including a late model Audi having their contents stolen using this method.

It's a huge problem, but it seems right now nobody wants to make a big story of it, because it really is a truly massive security problem. I'd love to know what the view is of NZ insurance companies if contents are stolen from a locked car using this method, particularly as there won't be any signs of forced entry.

I presume that the same device (pocket sized RF amplifier) could be used in a similar manner with RFID "prox card" security doors etc. - all you need is for someone with a card to be in range - then open sesame.

sbiddle

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#1301196 9-May-2015 16:12

Fred99:
sbiddle:
scottjpalmer: How far do they get before the car shuts down because the key isn't present?

People aren't using this to steal cars - they're using it to steal goods from cars.

I'm actually in the US at present and ironically just watched a story on the news showing video footage of two vehicles including a late model Audi having their contents stolen using this method.

It's a huge problem, but it seems right now nobody wants to make a big story of it, because it really is a truly massive security problem. I'd love to know what the view is of NZ insurance companies if contents are stolen from a locked car using this method, particularly as there won't be any signs of forced entry.

I presume that the same device (pocket sized RF amplifier) could be used in a similar manner with RFID "prox card" security doors etc. - all you need is for someone with a card to be in range - then open sesame.

Not quite.. Cars don't use RFID for the transmission to the car, it's RF based and many manufacturers now are using an ISM band around 902MHz.

13.56MHz RFID/NFC signals aren't designed to travel long distances.

Batman

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#1301201 9-May-2015 16:44

xpd: Our 2004 Nissan Wingroad had a card for unlocking and you started the car by just turning a "knob" where the key would go. If the car would go far without it I dont know, never tried :) Think it would allow you to drive tho as it was just more for authentication, rather than a true proximity control.

So once "authenticated", you could open/close doors and start the car.

car goes on forever until you shut it down. it is a authentication to start the car only.

RUKI

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#1301985 11-May-2015 14:39

kingdragonfly: Obviously to defeat radio amplifier, all you need is to put your car keys in a "Faraday cage"

The refrigerator is one, or better is a small metal box made out of something conductive like copper mesh.

Thinking outside the [Faraday] box: add micro switch to the FOB - save on battery when you are not using it and eliminate the need for the "cage"...