Comfort Access daily mail shocker

[tjlees]

Time to get a metal box ....(or put keys in the fridge)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4456992/Sh...

[helix402]

Does wearing a tin foil hat help?

[Mike335i]

Steering lock? Dominate the stairs? Don't spec comfort access?

[helix402]

Dominate the stairs wearing a tinfoil hat.

[moffat]

BMW stating that this form of theft is extremely rare is bending the truth.

I went to a Financial Crime event recently and the Home Office were talking about this.

Mercedes have Keyless in many of their C Class now and it's not hard to steal them using a laptop with a USB antenna and some software (also easily available).

Touching the door handle makes the car communicate with the key, hold laptop near kitchen or front door (two most common places for car keys) and the key will communicate back to the car. Signals captured on laptop, then use laptop to gain entry to the car.

It's all a little too easy and I for one would not spec Comfort or Keyless.

[Helicopter123]

Easy to dismiss this as its in the 'daily fail' but don't shoot the messenger.

Police reports confirm that this is a real issue and one that will only grow as more get hold of the technology.

Presume some sore of a software fix possible? Meantime, can comfort access be disabled by owners/dealers?

[bmwmike]

Same here. Don't have comfort access on my f10 and would be disabling it if I had it.

I doubt the fix for a man in the middle replay attack like this would be easily applied to existing cars either.. anyone know ? Are any keyless systems not vulnerable to this?

[Hoofy]

"Comfort access" - I thought this was going to be about haemorrhoid car seats.

[MitchT]

Are people really too lazy to press a button on a fob?

[Fore Left]

A friend had his Merc stolen this way. However if you double press the fob it disables keyless entry. He wishes he read the manual now

They can even do it from some distance away now

https://www.wired.com/2017/04/just-pair-11-radio-g...

[ZX10R NIN]

It's enough to make you want to go back to the simpler days of having an actual key.

[Mike335i]

So glad I have a key (well a fob) that has to be inserted into the slot (ooh-er-missus). Not only is it not as easy to steal, I have somewhere to put the key when driving too. Can't stand having anything in my pockets when driving!

[Cheib]

I bought a Cayenne recently to replace an X5....hardly any used cars have "Keyless Go" or whatevr Porsche call it and on the Configurator if you're buying a new car it has a disclaimer telling you "May increase chances of your car being stolen" or something like that. You're bonkers if you spec it. Had Comfort Access on my old X5 and whilst it can be very useful just not worth it.

[anonymous-user]

There's no doubt this is happening but a quick check shows many makes of vehicle are being regularly stolen, comfort access or not.

I'm not sure this is that significant. If the thieves really want your car they'll have it, comfort access or not.

[Mike335i]

REALIST123 said:

There's no doubt this is happening but a quick check shows many makes of vehicle are being regularly stolen, comfort access or not.

I'm not sure this is that significant. If the thieves really want your car they'll have it, comfort access or not.

I reckon thieves will target the easiest cars to steal though, reduce the risk to them and maximise potential earnings. Any car that is likely to have comfort access is potentially more desirable than those certain to not have it.

Funny how modern technology is making cars easier to steal! Surely manufacturers can't have been this blind to the risks of this new technology? It seems blindingly obvious that a continuous signal could be intercepted and manipulated for ill gains.

[ian in lancs]

can comfort access be turned off?

[alock]

Have insurance companies started asking whether keyless is fitted?

That'll be the indicator that it's a real problem which increases the risk.

[teabelly]

Why does the key communicate over more than 1m away from the car? It shouldn't. Only the button unlock method should communicate further. Basic error in design. The whole point of keyless entry is you're right next to the car when you press the button. If you're right next to the car and the key isn't then the door shouldn't unlock and the car shouldn't start even if the car is open.

[ian in lancs]

teabelly said:

Why does the key communicate over more than 1m away from the car? It shouldn't. Only the button unlock method should communicate further. Basic error in design. The whole point of keyless entry is you're right next to the car when you press the button. If you're right next to the car and the key isn't then the door shouldn't unlock and the car shouldn't start even if the car is open.

they don't! What the scrote's appear to be doing is amplifying the signal from the car and amplifying the response signal from the key and fooling the car into thinking the key is closer than it is. Not dissimilar to the wifi range extenders some have in their homes.

I wonder if comfort access can be turned off by a dealer? Or, alternatively, sell replacement keys without that feature.

[smashy]

its not just comfort access its Fobs as well the ones you press. The answer is simple enough wrap your spare in aluminium and get a RFID wallet for a tenner from Amazon for the one you use.