Last night (14.2 to 15.2.2022) a BMW was stolen. The thieves probably used the widespread Keyless Go system for this. How to protect yourself.
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Keyless Go makes car theft easy – how to protect yourself
© ADAC/Uwe Rattay
Probably in the night from Monday, February 14, 2022 to Tuesday, February 15, 2022, unknown persons stole a black BMW X3 xDrive in the Lower Bavarian town of Dingolfing. The vehicle was parked in the driveway of the property. The BMW was equipped with a so-called Keyless Go system. The keys to the X3 are still with the owner.
The police suspect that the thieves stole the BMW using the keyless go system. The officials give the following tips to prevent your vehicle from being stolen via the Keyless Go system:
Never leave the key near the house or apartment door.
Shield the radio signal with suitable measures (e.g. aluminum casing, possibly tin can). To do this, do the test on the vehicle. Only if the shielded key does not work directly on the vehicle do you have sufficient security.
When exiting the vehicle, pay attention to whether people with briefcases in your vicinity are acting suspiciously. These could be professional car thieves.
You can also ask the manufacturer of your vehicle whether comfort access can be temporarily deactivated for your vehicle. With some keys, the keyless function can be switched off completely, for example by pressing the lock button on the key twice. Your specialist workshop may also be able to provide you with information on which options are available specifically for your vehicle.
The problem that thieves can steal modern cars via keyless go systems has been known for a long time. Car manufacturers are very slow to react to this security gap. The ADAC has so far examined 500 keyless cars for theft protection. According to the ADAC, the majority of new car models with a keyless locking system are still not protected against theft and can be opened and driven away using a radio extension.
This is how modern cars become safe
According to the ADAC, only 24 models should be well protected – you can find the list here. However, these vehicles are equipped with UWB (Ultra Wide Band) technology and could not be stolen with the devices used by ADAC. Because UWB ensures that the vehicle recognizes the actual distance of the car key and only opens when the key is in the immediate vicinity.
New Jaguar and Land Rover models from 2018 are well protected. Since 2019, more and more group models from Audi, Seat, Skoda and Volkswagen have been protected with UWB. There are also new vehicles from BMW, Genesis and Mercedes that are supposed to offer the same protection with UWB, as the ADAC explains.
Alternative to UWB:
Some manufacturers rely on a motion sensor in the key. If this is not moved for a certain period of time, the radio signal switches off and the vehicle can no longer be opened illegally and driven away. From the point of view of the ADAC, however, this method is less secure, since keyless theft is still possible until the radio signal is switched off. So far, the ADAC has been able to demonstrate this system in 37 of all tested models.
Apple Carkey in the test: Open BMW with iPhone and drive off (“BMW Digital Key”)