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posted by takyon on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:06AM   Printer-friendly
from the wrangled dept.

Federal and California state law enforcement authorities have broken up a sophisticated auto-theft ring run by a Tijuana-based motorcycle club that swiped 150 Jeep Wranglers in San Diego County over the past several years. The Jeeps, worth $4.5 million, were sold in Mexico or stripped for parts that were then sold in Mexico.

Authorities said the thieves exploited a design feature of the Jeep Wrangler, gained access to a proprietary database that contains codes used to create duplicate keys for each car and then used a high-tech computer to get away with the cars.

Thieves would target a Jeep in a San Diego neighborhood, getting the critical vehicle identification number. Armed with that, they accessed the key database, which contained two special codes: one for creating a pattern to make a new key and the second that programmed a computer chip in the key that was linked to the car's computer system.

It's not precisely clear how the thieves got access to the database, but a car dealership in Cabo San Lucas at the tip of the Baja peninsula appears to be involved.

Link: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/courts/sd-me-countywide-crime-20170530-story.html


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  • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:09AM (3 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:09AM (#520024) Journal

    Jeep claims that 150 of their cars are worth $4.5 million. Some Jeep owners would argue that claim.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:45AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:45AM (#520031)

    And most would agree. Or they wouldn't be Jeep owners.

    Most Jeep ownership is by choice.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @01:47AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @01:47AM (#520056)

    That's only $30K per jeep.
    Pricing on high end jeeps is nearly double that.