As automotive companies look to incorporate technology to make their cars more convenient to use, the security gaps that exist in modern devices have only become more apparent. Features such as keyless ignition have become a liability, far from the selling points that automotive companies thought they would be.

Which?, a popular consumer group based in the U.K. recently released their research exposing the security flaws in the keyless system that make some of the most popular vehicles vulnerable. Ford Fiesta, Ford Focus, Nissan Qashqai and Volkswagen Golf were all found to be at risk.

How are keyless cars stolen?

One way keyless cars are stolen is by relaying the signal from the fob to the vehicle. In this case, thieves do not need to have physical access to the fob or the key. They can stand outside the home and try to detect the signal from the fob. Once they find the signal, they bounce that signal off to another device placed close to the car. Once the car detects that signal in close proximity, it lowers its’ defences giving car thieves unfettered access to the vehicle.

Keyless systems, which work on the principles of electronic relays, can easily be mimicked to unlock the cars even in the absence of the real fob. In the newly released research report, ADAC, a German Automobile club, attacked keyless systems on 237 vehicles in total. They found that only 3 vehicles were secure while all remaining vehicles were vulnerable to some extent.

The three cars that were found to be secure had the same manufacturer—Jaguar Land Rover. It shows that the solutions to address these security flaws do exist in the market but despite that, most automobile companies keep putting insecure vehicles out that give car thieves an ever-increasing buffet of cars to choose from.

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