Outsmarting Power Amplifiers for Keyless Entry Vehicles

13 Jul 2015

As keyless start systems are becoming more common among newer cars, thieves are finding new ways to break in and steal these vehicles. In a recent article for The New York Times, Prius owner Nick Bilton detailed his search for the answer to how his car had been broken into three times over the course of one month. His experience was just one of many break-ins in his neighborhood.

While witnessing the last of these break ins, he noticed that the thief was using a small device to unlock his car with ease. After much investigation, he found research from one of the founders of 3db Technologies, Boris Danev. Danev explained that he believed the thieves may be using power amplifiers, which can be bought for as little as $17 online.

Keyless entry vehicles unlock by searching for a signal from the keys. Normally, keyless entry vehicles have to be within a few feet of their key before they will unlock. Power amplifiers, however, boost the strength of the signal that searches for the key. Because of this, they are able to use power amplifiers to break into cars as long as the key is relatively nearby.

With news of this method for breaking into keyless cars spreading, there may be reason to be concerned if you have a car with a keyless entry or you own a fleet of vehicles with keyless entry technology.

In addition to the possibility of break-ins using a power amplifier, Danev believes there are many security flaws associated with keyless entry vehicles and he suggests that car owners take precautions.

According to Danev, the trick to outsmarting power amplifiers is a simple a fix. Owners of keyless entry vehicles can place their keys in the freezer, which will block the key from sending or receiving electric signals.

Jason Mick of Daily Tech suggested a more common approach, telling car owners keep their car free of valuables and secure them in a garage whenever possible.

It is also helpful to remember that, if a car or fleet vehicle owner have a GPS tracking device installed in the car, they will be able to use it to track down their in the unfortunate case that it is stolen.

In the future, there may be upgrades to the keyless entry vehicles which enables the system to detect how close the key is to the car before unlocking. Until then, you can follow Danev’s very interesting advice for keeping your car secure–simply toss them in the freezer.


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