Slashdot Mirror
Is Remote Keyless Entry Any Safer Than It Used to Be?
Clue4All asks: "The time has come for me to start looking for a new car to buy after the winter snows have come and gone. Every car I'm interested in seems to come standard with Remote Keyless Entry with all their models. Has this technology become safer since I last bought a car? I remember seeing a news story years ago about burglars receiving signals used to open garage doors, and Google turned up articles like this from a few years ago. Apparently, some keyless entry systems now use "code hopping," which changes the signal after each use, making copying the signals pretty hard. I've requested information from a few car companies as to whether they employ such technology, what are your findings? Are these safe? I ask because I live in an apartment complex, not that I'd worry about anyone living around me doing something like this, but the thought is still there."
First, to answer your question: remote keyless entry has become a lot safer in the last years.
However, this is not so relevant. When people want to steal your car, they will steal it. No anti-theft system is completely safe. Even when it is impossible to open your car, they will simply wait for you to open it. This means that the best solution is to discourage people from stealing your car. Buy a model that is not too attractive. Don't leave your car in unsafe neighbourhoods.
One last suggestion: if someone shows up and threatens you, just give him the keys. Your life is worth much more than your car.
Don't forget to ask for battery time when you are at it. If the batteries run out quick, you will get very frustrated.
Anything installed from the factory is bound to be the cheapest possible component. AudioVox makes alot of these factory units (the car companies don't actually make their own car alarms)...But it depends on what kind of alarm is being installed...if it's sold for under $40k, most likely it doesn't have code hopping...so do what I did and buy a vehicle without an alarm and simply have a good one installed by a local shop that warantees their service (no crap from Wal-Mart or Best Buy).
It's true that modern security system installation is nothing but a connection kit...some of em don't even have to drill holes...but they can still skrew it up if they don't know what they're doing...
In most cases you're talking about $99 for a factory installed alarm. And a good unit from Viper (500ESP+) that will have the code hopping feature is gonna cost you at least $300. The other advantages of a GOOD alarm system is that you can install modules like power window/sunroof and remote start (for automatics).
Anyhow, it's not really smart to rely on those factory alarms for security.
Secondly, I doubt anything new could be much more unsafe than a mechanical key system. It takes me about 5 minutes to get into an older car, and a professional burglar will probably be driving it away faster than it takes you to find the right key.
If you have an alarm, again it will take me approximately 5 minutes to disable (about 7 seconds to disable the horn), and the professional burglar will probably do it a lot faster (since he has done it so many times before, and also because he doesn't worry too much about electrical insulation, etc...)
If you are really worried about people using a programmable IR remote to steal your car, you should shift the area of worry. I'll be happy to line up 20 people in less than half-an-hour who could easily steal your car without such advanced equipment.
Here's what you really should be worried about: Is my keyless system expensive enough for someone to steal it? Will someone steal my alarm? Is my car-stereo visible outside, and expensive enough to be worth the trouble? Do I usually keep my wallet in the front seat? Is my car much more expensive than my neighbours or workmates? Etc...
In the end, it turns out insurance companies have done most of this thinking already, so you could just ask them.
Although I usually do not recommend this approach, consider obtaining security through obscurity.
:)
:) I'm just a happy customer.
Factory-installed keyless entry / remote starter systems all come from the same company, so if you get a Dodge Intrepid with an installed system, it will be identical to every other Dodge Intrepid's system. If you're afraid of someone scanning the remote's codes to gain access to your car, consider getting an aftermarket system. They're abundant in today's DYI market, and every automotive store carries a few different brands. Most of them are likely to have varying circuitry, varying frequencies, varying communication protocols, which make it that much harder and impractical for a would-be thief to get a scanner for (instead, get a scanner that caters to a wider "audience", if you will).
Naturally, a thief bent on stealing your car might get frustrated with not being able to crack your remote's code, perhaps to the point of using a jimmy and scratching the precious paint job, or even using a blunt object and simply breaking the glass. But at least your car will still be there
Personally, I use a remote system from ICDynamics. It gives me remote start, keyless entry and trunk release options, and that's good enough for me. Gets good range, too (over 300ft), so I can start my car up from the comfort of my home on days like today (a few degrees below freezing).
No, I do not work for them
Have EVDO, will travel.
Actually, I felt kinda dumb when I opened the manual and it described how the code hopping work and what the chances are that you would hit another keyless remote with the exact same signature.
I've seen the same description in other japanese autos manuals and remotes. (haven't played with the american domestics for a while though)
What if you have multiple remotes?
I read some technical literature on code-hopping remotes- you can have multiple remotes and so forth. A code hopping remote is a one-way device- it only transmits, and it transmits a different code each time you press the button. The reciever knows what the code was the last time you pressed the button, so it knows what the next code should be (they use very, very long pseudo-random sequences).
So what happens if you press the remote when you're too far away, or your 3 year old finds it in the car and presses it merrily for a few miles until he gets bored? If the current code is code N, the next to be transmitted is code N+1, and the next that the reciever will key on will be N+1 to some range of N+X where X is pretty large, but still far smaller than Y, the total number of different codes.
In addition to keying on something in the next group of X codes, another safeguard thats used is to key on two successive remote-keys- lets say my transmitter is out of sequence, say by A - the reciever is looking for a code between N+1 and N+X- it recieves the code N+A (where N+1N+AN+X) It won't key on that, but if the next code it recieves is N+A+1, it knows that it got the right sequence, and will only open after the next keypress.
For multiple remotes, it adds a separate domain to key upon(say, Y to Y+N)- slightly less secure, but of course the more keys there are for any door, the less secure it is.
Not only is the remote keyless entry unsafe, but driving cars is inherently unsafe. You could be struck and killed. Stay off the roads. Hide in your basement. Wear tinfoil.
In the Star Trek evil Mirror Universe, virtuoso cellist Yo-Yo Ma is gangsta hiphop star DJ Yo Ma-Ma.
Look, as everybody else has said, if someone's going to steal your car, they're going to steal it. If they're going to break into it, they're going to break into it.
... But you don't see burglers breaking into houses via the garage door very often. It's just easier for them to crowbar through the back door or find a house with an open window.
.. but no matter what it will usually knock your rate down a little bit.
To get into the car, the thief has several options: Intercept, record and duplicate the keyless entry's signal; jimmy the door lock by yanking the lock wire or an interior switch (very hard on most new cars, but still possible on a great many); go after the keyed lock on the door itself with a pick/what have you; or break the window. Anyway, the point is that even if the thief has all the gear to get into your car via the keyless entry system, it's not going to be very effective to use versus any of the other methods. It's the same with robbing houses. Too many people leave the door between the garage and the house unlocked, and the garage doors operate on a (generally much less secure than car) wireless RF remote.
Anyway, what it boiled down to for me was that:
1) pushing a button to unlock the car is a hell of a lot quicker/easier than turning a key.
2) I am an idiot and forget where I parked a lot. I can make the car beep at me, and it helps.
3) Having a car alarm of some sort brings down my car insurance a lot... i guess mainly because of my age and the car i drive
So anyway, I'd say go for it, but make sure that the system has some sort of alarm feature such as a glass break mic or ignition cutoff that would classify it as a tiny bit more than a remote lock/unlock button, or it's not going to help you with your insurance.
~GoRK
With that said, you might try doing the smart thing - don't buy a car someone would want to steal. Remember, a vehicle is simply a way to get you and your stuff from point A to point B - the minute the vehicle seems like something that gives you an "image", you are lost. That isn't to say that you need to get a clunker or something, just don't buy for image. Furthermore, the best advice I was ever given as a kid was "Buy a vehicle that will for for you, instead of one where you work for it". My vehicle is a small pickup - should I lose my job as a programmer, I still have a vehicle I could (in theory) load up some lawn equipment in and do some yard work for cash until I get back on my feet, or deliver newspapers, or phone books, or haul trash, or throw wire boxes in and install network cabling, etc - hard to do that with another vehicle, but maybe your needs or work are different.
One note: buying a used car may be a better thing - my small truck is pre-1997, which I think is the year they went to the ODB-II system. This is the "On Board Diagnostic" system used by the vehicle's engine computer - it also reports back things typically using a reader. Here is the clincher - on ODB-I systems, you can read the codes yourself, most of the time doing nothing more than stick a jumper in a plug and watching a blinking light - other times by keying the starter switch in a certain pattern and watching the engine light blink. ODB-II systems require you to buy a reader, and unless you buy an expensive reader, you can only read one model vehicle at a time. Still, you have to spend some bucks for the reader. Another thing is that on ODB-II systems when you go get smog checked, if they are using the system, they simply plug in, and tell you if you pass or not. My wife recently had this done on her 1997 Neon, and she passed, but if she hadn't, the paper wouldn't have said where the issue was, and we would have probably had to take it to a mechanic to get it fixed - at least when you can see what emmisions are out of whack, you have an idea where to start (ie, O2 sensor, etc). Don't even get me started on ODB-III (which seems near Orwellian in scope).
Another thing would be to see if they will eliminate these "mandatory" systems that simply add to the cost of a new car and take it off the price. Save a little money.
Finally, instead of an expensive system, add an "old school" system - a second switch. Wire it inline with the starter switch. If you want, you can wire up a high-current contact relay in the system instead, and hook that up to the relay in the starter, so that current has to pass through both set of contacts in order for the starter to turn over. Hide the switch somewhere in the automobile where a thief typically won't look - under the dash is bad, but in the glove box, a cubby hole, under the seat, in the trunk - all good spots. Add a well visible blinking red LED to complete the system. Total cost in parts will be a few bucks, but would probably frustrate the hell out of a potential thief (of course, it might tick him off so bad that he destroys the interior of the car or something, and it wouldn't stop him from stealing the radio or anything - which is a good reason to keep the factory radio).
Ok, you may not like any of my answers, but my point still stands - a vehicle is just something to get you and your stuff from point A to point B. Whatever you do, don't get into the "buy a new car every three years" cycle - this is just a waste. Pay off your car, keep up its maintenance, and the thing should last you a looong time - my truck currently 8 years old, and has 115,000 miles on it - the only thing I am needing replacement on is a new fan belt and new tires, which will probably happen sometime this winter. I replace the oil and filter on it every 3000 miles (btw, get a "permanent" air-filter as soon as you buy the car - it will cost more, but in the long run you will save money on air-filter replacements after about 8-10 oil changes), replace the shocks when needed, flush the tranny and radiator every now-and-then, change the spark plugs and wires as needed, belts, hoses, diff gear oil (nasty stuff) - every 60,000 miles get the timing belt/chain looked at and replaced if needed (timing chains can go longer in between checks - see your manual - but they still need to be looked after). If you treat everything right, there is no reason your car shouldn't last for 200,000 miles or more.
Myself, I plan on keeping my truck until the engine dies - then if the engine dies, I might look into getting a new engine (has to be cheaper than a brand new truck, and better than a used truck that I don't know how it was maintained)...
Reason is the Path to God - Anon