Keyless relay attack - in action.

[markjay]

Is it not possible to prise-out the engine start button and just leave the old-type (keyfob) keyhole?

 

[markjay]

by that time, the car is long gone or in the back of a trailer

My Renault seemed perfectly happy for me to continue driving it without the key present (when my wife left the car taking the key with her...), albeit with a dash warning 'Key not present'. No idea how far it would go though.

 

[GeeJayW]

Is it not possible to prise-out the engine start button and just leave the old-type (keyfob) keyhole?

Yes, the push button can be taken out. They are also available quite cheaply on eBay, so would-be thief might have that one covered. The button does kind of advertise that the car is Keyless Go, so removing it may place a little doubt in the minuscule minded thief.

 

[markjay]

Yes, the push button can be taken out. They are also available quite cheaply on eBay, so would-be thief might have that one covered. The button does kind of advertise that the car is Keyless Go, so removing it may place a little doubt in the minuscule minded thief.

Yes, on the CCTV footage you can see one of the thieves shining a torch through the driver's side window into the steering wheel area.

 

[CaptainChaos]

A lot must depend on the layout of your house and drive though.

My keyless entry needs me to be stood right next to the car to activate it, so Low Life Scum#1 needs to be stood next to the car. LLS#2 with his relay gadget needs to be within range of LLS#1 and within range of the key in the house. In the video if the owner had his keys at the back of the house, or his car parked on the road I don't think they would have got away with it. Would they?

 

[markjay]

Well city dwellers living in flats are protected then

 

[Yugguy]

I guess when I end up with a kg car I'll have to add an rfid-blocking pouch to my collection. It'll go nicely with my rfid-blocking wallet. And they called me paranoid...

 

[whitenemesis]

My Renault seemed perfectly happy for me to continue driving it without the key present (when my wife left the car taking the key with her...), albeit with a dash warning 'Key not present'. No idea how far it would go though.

The car would go until you stopped and switched of the IGN, then wouldn't restart. The thieves obviously know this

 

[Cubase]

A lot must depend on the layout of your house and drive though.

My keyless entry needs me to be stood right next to the car to activate it, so Low Life Scum#1 needs to be stood next to the car. LLS#2 with his relay gadget needs to be within range of LLS#1 and within range of the key in the house. In the video if the owner had his keys at the back of the house, or his car parked on the road I don't think they would have got away with it. Would they?

From the article posted, it looks like they use a relay device. One gadget gets the code then relays it to the second gadget.

 

[gaz_l]

A lot must depend on the layout of your house and drive though.

My keyless entry needs me to be stood right next to the car to activate it, so Low Life Scum#1 needs to be stood next to the car. LLS#2 with his relay gadget needs to be within range of LLS#1 and within range of the key in the house. In the video if the owner had his keys at the back of the house, or his car parked on the road I don't think they would have got away with it. Would they?

There's nothing to say the relay link is constrained by the same RF requirements as the short range keyless one. Chuck enough power at it and the keys could be miles away from the car and it'd still work (in theory).

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[flowrider]

Yes, the push button can be taken out. They are also available quite cheaply on eBay, so would-be thief might have that one covered. The button does kind of advertise that the car is Keyless Go, so removing it may place a little doubt in the minuscule minded thief.

You could always replace the button with a key operated lock!

 

[GeeJayW]

You could always replace the button with a key operated lock!

It is a key operated lock. Without the button, the key fits the dash and functions as it did in my W204 coupe.

 

[Brian k]

Oh bu**er, the spare. Never thought about that one, which resides in the kitchen drawer 15ft from the front door. I think double tap and then faraday bag for that one as well.

 

[moonloops]

Just protect your keys by placing them in a tempest rated shielded cage or as I do, in a biscuit tin. The latter has an added bonus of me being able to scoff a custard cream before every drive

 

[Scooby_Doo]

Yes, the push button can be taken out. They are also available quite cheaply on eBay, so would-be thief might have that one covered. The button does kind of advertise that the car is Keyless Go, so removing it may place a little doubt in the minuscule minded thief.

You don't need to look inside the car, the chrome topped door handles are giveaway enough. My keyless won't work over about a metre from the car , I wonder how close to the house door/wall the key has to be to have the signal picked up ??

 

[GeeJayW]

You don't need to look inside the car, the chrome topped door handles are giveaway enough. My keyless won't work over about a metre from the car , I wonder how close to the house door/wall the key has to be to have the signal picked up ??

I didn't know that the chrome door handles were a giveaway! Might as well have a 'Keyless Go' badge on the car then...

As for the distance thing, if they have a big enough antenna and amplifier to acquire the signal from the key, then I guess anywhere in the house would be in range as per our WiFi systems.

 

[ph47mf]

storing it in your fridge is a good shout though i am not sure how it will affect the battery life in the long run.

 

[190]

storing it in your fridge is a good shout though i am not sure how it will affect the battery life in the long run.

Batteries normally last longer when stored at low temperature.

 

[claspknife]

Batteries normally last longer when stored at low temperature.

This really true? How come car battery tend to go flatter in the winter??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[SW18]

This really true? How come car battery tend to go flatter in the winter??

Maybe because of more use of window heaters, lights, etc, when driving?