Hundreds of new cars, including four of the UK's five most popular, are highly susceptible to keyless theft, according to a new study.
Research conducted by consumer group Which? looked at 237 cars sold with keyless entry technology. Among these, researchers were able to open and start all but seven models using relay boxes, portable devices that can extend the signal sent from the key inside the owner's house.
The box fools the car into thinking the key is closer to it than it really is, allowing thieves to climb into the car, start it and drive away before the system realises the key isn't in proximity.
The hugely popular Ford Focus, Ford Fiesta (pictured), Nissan Qashqai and Volkswagen Golf were all described as "highly vulnerable" by Which?. Of the seven cars that couldn't be started, four could still have their doors unlocked by the device.
The three cars that were not susceptible to relay boxes were the Range Rover, Land Rover Discovery and Jaguar I-Pace. Jaguar Land Rover has recently stepped up the security of its keyless models after a spate of widely reported thefts in the past few years.
Around 106,000 vehicle thefts were reported between March 2017 and March 2018 across England and Wales, which is the highest number since 2009.
Mike Hawes, chairman of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, claims that the latest security technology "has helped bring down theft dramatically with, on average, less than 0.3% of our cars on the roads stolen".
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Got to be more to this
There has got to be more to this, as otherwise it doesn't make sense. From the limited (and poor) description supplied - the "repeater" has to be in proximity to the key in order to get the signal that it has to replicate to the car -> so the thief has to know the car *and* be in proximity to the key. Apart from this obvious problem, simply masking the key would defeat the hack - just putting the key in a safe when you are away from home on holiday for example would solve the problem. Also a garage also solves the problem as the car is inside a locked garage - whether at home or at work.
Even "worst case", a burglar B&E's would find a limited advantage, as (s)he would need to find your keys for the hack to work in whch case, there is little point as they already have the keys...
I'm pretty sure car security
I'm pretty sure car security goes in cycles. Years ago, Ford were often criticised for vehicle security, so basically they had to improve it, which they did. But then, consumers forget about these aspects so the manufacturers take the opportunity to cut back a bit, to reduce costs, hoping nobody will notice, and spend the money on some 'sexier' features, to attract buyers. The latest Transit for example, was introduced with various security weak spots, which the previous model had covered, which Ford have now had to rectify and modify because owners and users have complained. JLR, similarly have had to improve their vehicle security because of so much bad press, but what's the betting in the future they'll try and cut back on this, when the dust settles, and instead spend that money on more of their 'see through bonnet' type systems.