Experts ​alerted motor trade to security risks of ‘smart key’ systems which have now fuelled highest level of car thefts for a decade.

    • atrielienz@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      ·
      7 months ago

      I have a question. What do you think a rolling code style security system does if the thief is amplifying your key fobs signal by standing in your driveway at 3 am and then transmitting it to your door lock? Because we’re talking about keyless entry where you don’t have to push any buttons on the key fob it just has to be within three feet of the vehicle. They are literally using your key to unlock your door. The key is always transmitting. The vehicle is always receiving. At the point where they have access to the interior of the vehicle they can just pull the fuses for the horn and lights and then pop the transmission shifter cable off the transmission control lever and manually put the car in neutral. This attack takes maybe ten minutes. At that point they can literally just roll the car onto a flatbed and drive away. The flipper zero costs $169 USD. But you can make one from parts for much less. A GPS blocking tool costs around $15. A signal repeater isn’t expensive either. Keyless entry on the whole is broken.

      You may stop joyriders and petty thieves. But you won’t stop anyone looking to steal a car who has the know how and who is looking to sell your car for parts. The fact is, a lot of premium cars are vulnerable to attacks like this.

      And before you even start about what I know about it, literally I’m an avionics tech. Rolling codes and frequency hopping is how we keep unfriendly forces from listening in on comms. Electronic attack and defence is literally what I did in the Navy for twelve years.

      Rolling codes are a good security feature. But they do nothing to stop the attack that other articles on this subject better explain.

      https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cars-hacked-stolen-keyless-vehicle-thefts/

      https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/04/crooks-are-stealing-cars-using-previously-unknown-keyless-can-injection-attacks/

      https://www.locksmiths.co.uk/faq/keyless-car-theft/

      • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        7 months ago

        Did you read OPs article or the ones you linked?

        I went to the ARS one and it’s talking about CAN hacking which requires a physical connection…

        It’s a great article, but if it has anything to do with this conversation and if anything backs me up. It’s about all the work thieves are going thru because rolling keys beats emulators.

        C’mon man, even if you know what you’re talking about about (doesn’t seem to be the case) you still gotta read your own articles.

    • sramder@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      arrow-down
      7
      ·
      7 months ago

      Isn’t that what the Flipper Zero is for ;-) Kia notwithstanding it’s not that easy. But the relay attacks have been around since at least 2018 and I suspect years longer.

      • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        10
        ·
        7 months ago

        For garage doors… Yeah, it’s been a thing

        Because you can sit something there, monitor the rolling codes, then inject so it has a real one.

        For a car, you have to follow them around while they lock/unlock repeatedly. And that’s only if people are using the button and not proximity. If they’re just using proximity, you’re going to have to be standing right next to them.

        • krellor@kbin.social
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          7
          ·
          7 months ago

          I think most of the wireless attacks aren’t trying to be so sophisticated. They target cars parked at home and use a relay attack that uses a repeater antenna to rebroadcast the signal from the car to the fob inside and vice versa, tricking the car into thinking the fob is nearby. Canada has seen a large spike in this kind of attack. Faraday pouches that you put the fob inside of at home mitigates the attack.

          • sramder@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            7 months ago

            So does not leaving your keys by the front door… not that I follow my own advice :-)

            • krellor@kbin.social
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              4
              ·
              7 months ago

              Yeah. Shockingly people store things where it is convenient to have them. :) I’m glad I didn’t have a keyless system to with about.

              • sramder@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                arrow-down
                2
                ·
                7 months ago

                I’m just banking on my car being the least fancy in my complex ;-)

                Keyless entry sounds stupid and I’ve totally mocked people for being “to lazy to turn a key.” But pushbutton start makes my slow little Subaru feel like a race car :-)

            • 𝒍𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒏@lemmy.dbzer0.com
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              3
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              7 months ago

              Relay attacks don’t need the key to be in close proximity, they can be read from almost anywhere in the house if they aren’t in a faraday pouch or microwave. Have you seen the size of the antennas these attacks use?