Keyless Entry Security

Jamauk said:
For the Focus I keep the keys well away from the front door, as the MK2.5 ST is rapidly becoming one of the most stolen. Sadly that isn't a perfect solution as the OBDII port can for some stupid reason have another key programmed to it, which is the latest tactic from thieves.

JLR have half got there with the keyless system in that the ECU can only have two keys programmed to it at any one time, but that's of no help if the thief manages to replicate the signal.
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I just used to pull the OBD2 fuse out in my ST.

Another trick is using a dummy port and routing the real one somewhere hidden. For some reason Ford like to have a huge blind spot at the front of the car which the alarm system can't see, along with no glass break detectors. They can break the window and plug something in without even setting the alarm off :/
 
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adolf hamster said:
funny really, putting on a stoplock or keeping your keys in a special bag/tin seems like a much bigger inconvenience than just pressing a button when i want the thing to unlock.
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That's the funny thing, people pay for the convenience of keyless then have the inconvenience of taking keys out of Faraday bags and/or extra security. I specced mine without Kessy and no regrets at all.
 
Tin as in food? That’s typically aluminium where as you need the ferrous material such as iron to block them, the mesh bags are typically woven stainless steel.
 
Jamauk said:
I actually have no idea around the OBD ghost, I think there are a few kits on eBay and it is quite often discussed on the Focus ST owners club forums. It is something I'll be looking into at some point in the future for when parked away from home/work as it's a very secure car park at work and at home it is parked in a garage with CCTV and when it has to be in the drive it is blocked in by another car.

a quick Google led me to THIS

The tracker costs £500 for installation which includes a years subscription, so obviously the first year for me at least would be pretty pointless, thankfully it was on the car when I bought it so I just had the £143 activation cost to cough up.
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I have Ghost on my Octavia vRS after it was stolen with the keys last year.

It isn't keyless but it works the same way. Turn on the ignition, enter a code, wait for confirmation then start the engine. If you don't enter a code it stalls and throws up errors on the dash. Gearbox, ECU etc...

If the drivers door is opened whilst the engine is running it does the same thing. Doesn't add much time entering the code and you get used to it.
 
Fingerprint scanners aren't secure either, infact they are very un-secure. What's the one thing which is going to be on the scanner itself? :p
 
Skully said:
I have Ghost on my Octavia vRS after it was stolen with the keys last year.

It isn't keyless but it works the same way. Turn on the ignition, enter a code, wait for confirmation then start the engine. If you don't enter a code it stalls and throws up errors on the dash. Gearbox, ECU etc...

If the drivers door is opened whilst the engine is running it does the same thing. Doesn't add much time entering the code and you get used to it.
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Seems kind of ironic that Citroen had this years ago on the Saxo!
 
DampCat said:
How do people secure keyless entry? I'm wondering if i just dont understand how it works.I picked up one of those key wallets, it's lined with something. But as a test I took the wallet with key into the car and it still starts. Are they just designed to hamper the range and because it's IN the car, even in the wallet, it's going to work? but it may be enough the block the signal from outside?
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Your Key Wallet either isn't the sort that you want (RFID) or doesn't work. I have an RFID pouch I keep my key in just take it out when im using the car for fear of someone stealing the car with the method you described

If the key is in the RFID pouch the car cant read the key even if its right next to it or even in the car.

Hawker
 
There is actually hack with Mercs (probably others too) where you can pull one of the lights off and use the connector to get in to the "infotainment" system via the canbus. Then from there get in to the ECU and start the car using a laptop :p

Probably beyond the skill level of the average car thief at the moment though. It was a determined hacker that figured it out.

The signal boosting thing is just one of the easier flaws to exploit, there are more. The more tech and convenience things they put in cars the more holes like this they create.
 
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hawker1986 said:
Your Key Wallet either isn't the sort that you want (RFID) or doesn't work. I have an RFID pouch I keep my key in just take it out when im using the car for fear of someone stealing the car with the method you described

If the key is in the RFID pouch the car cant read the key even if its right next to it or even in the car.

Hawker
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So the convenience is still there :D When I got my current car one thing I made sure it didn’t have was comfort access, I personally can’t be bothered with all this wallet daffing around, much easier to pull key out of pocket, press a button to unlock, put key back in pocket, start the car and drive away.
 
IAmATeaf said:
So the convenience is still there :D When I got my current car one thing I made sure it didn’t have was comfort access, I personally can’t be bothered with all this wallet daffing around, much easier to pull key out of pocket, press a button to unlock, put key back in pocket, start the car and drive away.
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Totally agree with you and if I was speccing the car I wouldn't have gone with the comfort access either, but it was second hand and it was on to car...wasn't a deal breaker.
 
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