Mazda Switches To USB Keys

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Posted by CmdrTaco on Thursday September 1, 2005 @07:45AM from the now-thats-just-wierd dept.

kv9 writes "The new Mazda Sassou while being 'cool and promoting a positive state of mind' has a most important feature, that every geek will love. Instead of the classic key it uses a usb flash drive for starting up. The key can also be used to transfer things like driving instructions or music to the car's hard drive."

16 of 623 comments (clear)

great, another point of failure by hqm · 2005-09-01 07:47 · Score: 5, Insightful

Now you don't have to lose your keys, just have to get them in salty water, or rub your feet on the carpet and touch them, or ....
1. Re:great, another point of failure by Saven+Marek · 2005-09-01 08:04 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  ...or take them to work. many many it workplaces ban the bringing of usb keys into the premises just as they do cell phones and ipods because of being a security risk.
  
  so you can't drive this car to work people
2. Re:great, another point of failure by Evil+Adrian · 2005-09-01 08:10 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Why are you running over your keys? Are you stupid? Or are you just making a stupid argument for argument's sake?
  
  Who has ever run over their keys, incidentally? Seems like the keys need to be IN THE CAR IN THE FIRST PLACE for the thing to even be running to run something over.
  
  Your post angered me. Almost irrationally so. But I think I'm right.
  
  --
  evil adrian
3. Re:great, another point of failure by ari_j · 2005-09-01 08:22 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Wow. There are officially four Nodaks on Slashdot. :)
Start the clock by Limburgher · 2005-09-01 07:47 · Score: 5, Insightful

How long before someone hacks it to:
A: Start multiple cars that they own
B: Start other people's cars

--
You are not the customer.
Driving Instructions? by dave-tx · 2005-09-01 07:49 · Score: 5, Funny

The key can also be used to transfer things like driving instructions
Sorry, but I don't want to be on the freeway with someone who needs instructions on how to drive.

--
>> "What would the robut do? Frame someone!"
What happened to RFID? by mungtor · 2005-09-01 07:50 · Score: 5, Informative

RFID would be the way to go. I though that somebody (Mercedes, Lexus?) had one of their uber-expensive cars set up so that you carried an RFID chip in a credit card in your wallet. When you pulled up on the doorhandle it checked your ID and unlocked. Automatically locked when you got more than 20 feet away, and only had a push-button for a starter.

Or, it could have all been a dream.
1. Re:What happened to RFID? by SFEley · 2005-09-01 08:08 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  It's not an "uber-expensive" feature; my Toyota Prius has it, and the car only cost $25,000. The RFID key's not a credit card, it's a fob on my keychain, but it's extremely convenient not to have to pull anything out to unlock my car or start it.
  
  --
  ESCAPE POD - The Science Fiction Podcast Magazine
SCIF by Copperhead · 2005-09-01 07:53 · Score: 5, Interesting

My office is a classified environment, and USB drives ain't allowed in the door. Where am I supposed to put my keys?

--
Your reality is lies and balderdash and I'm delighted to say that I have no grasp of it whatsoever. - Baron Munchausen
My first written complaint about /. by Skynyrd · 2005-09-01 07:53 · Score: 5, Informative

"Mazda switches to USB keys"

Um, no.

Mazda put a USB key in a freakin' concept car. There's no USB keys in any Mazda at any dealership now. It might happen some day down the road.

"Switches" my ass. "Tries out"? "Messes about with"?

Come on guys.
If by "Mazda switching to USB keys" by spyrral · 2005-09-01 07:55 · Score: 5, Insightful

...you mean Mazda experimenting with using USB drives as a key in a concept car, then yes.
Re:Security? by owlstead · 2005-09-01 08:17 · Score: 5, Informative

There are many USB tokens on the market. Probably a few of them will handle 2048 bit RSA keys. This is as strong asymetric encryption as you'll ever need.

What you do is you send a challenge (random bytes) from the car to the token. It encrypts (read: signs) the challenge with the private key. Now the encrypted challenge can only be decrypted by the public key. The car does this and if it finds the challenge it knows that the token has the secret private key of the public/private key pair.

These chips can keep the private key pretty safe, so safe that it is really, really hard to get it ever out of the chip, even in a big lab. And with USB it is pretty easy to put some MB's or GB's next to it.

All this said, such a key would be easy to loose (forget you put it in a computer somewhere), and USB has not such a strong connector (even if better than most computer connectors). I hope they used one that was designed from scratch. It's not so much the security that I worry about.
Re:Hot Wiring: No Match for a Thief by cgadd · 2005-09-01 08:20 · Score: 5, Informative

No, without commands from the computer to fire the injectors, etc, it won't start.
Re:Better than most. by LightningBolt! · 2005-09-01 08:24 · Score: 5, Funny

Not many people seem to know all you need is the VIN and a contact at a dealer to get a key, as well... and the VIN is visible on modern cars through the windshield

To be more specific, you need to have a sketchy contact at a dealer. In real terms, this translates to "anyone in sales or financing".

--
Old people fall. Young people spring. Rich people summer and winter.
Re:This is a BAD idea. by Octagon+Most · 2005-09-01 09:04 · Score: 5, Funny

"I can duplicate a USB key in just a few minutes while you're in the bathroom.

Since my keys are always in my pocket I will probably find your actions suspicious.
security is about planning for the worst by DarthAngst · 2005-09-01 13:33 · Score: 5, Informative

If you work in a facility that requires you to not bring media into work so that you can't remove secret information, you deserve to be fired for bringing in a flash drive. Trusted insiders are the greatest threat, hence the need for policies. Such policies are very enforceable, and hold up under the law for the dismissal of employees who violate them. A good policy sets up not only what's forbidden, but also what to do if a security breach happens. Check http://www.sans.org/. If an employee is determined enough, he or she might just find a less restrictive job.