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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 kaszz on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:51AM (2 children)

    by kaszz (4211) on Sunday June 04 2017, @12:51AM (#520033) Journal

    Anyone else thinking that creating a DIY key mechanism can thwart this because it will be unusual and unexpected for the systematic electronic car thief?

    It would be executed by connecting directly to the key system antenna input and preventing it to receive any over the air signal. A small microcontroller will then send the correct code, IF it itself receives the proper code over it's own radio interface. A question is how accessible the antenna connector(s) are and if they can be screened Faraday style from any over the air signals. Anyone that have looked into the antenna system for the key system?

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @01:52AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 04 2017, @01:52AM (#520058)

    > Anyone else thinking that creating a DIY key mechanism can thwart this because it will be unusual and unexpected

    And by definition it would be useless for the average owner because widespread use would make it usual and expected.

  • (Score: 2) by urza9814 on Monday June 05 2017, @06:56PM

    by urza9814 (3954) on Monday June 05 2017, @06:56PM (#520903) Journal

    Have you seen that latest Mad Max movie? At one point the chick mentions having switches configured to disable to fuel pump unless the right sequence is entered. I imagine that kind of system would be just as effective and significantly easier to implement. All you need to do is insert some kind of vaguely hidden switch connect to the power rails of some vital electrical component and that car isn't driving anywhere. Doesn't even need to be encoded really, even if it's a switch labeled "PUSH BUTTON TO START" stuffed inside the glovebox a criminal like this would never find it. They'd put in the key, the car wouldn't start, and they'd move on. They aren't going to screw around trying to diagnose and repair the issue.

    Of course if everybody does it in the same way that won't work so well (so don't make a business of it), and if someone is truly dedicated to take YOUR SPECIFIC car they could find a way to bypass it...but it'd be sufficient to secure just your own vehicle against these kinds of opportunistic criminals.