Gone in 20 Minutes: using laptops to steal cars

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Old 05-03-2006, 02:42 PM
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Gone in 20 Minutes: using laptops to steal cars

Looks like Beckham lost two x5's to some l33t haxor...

http://www.leftlanenews.com/2006/05/...to-steal-cars/
Originally Posted by leftlanenews
High-tech thieves are becoming increasingly savvy when it comes to stealing automobiles equipped with keyless entry and ignition systems. While many computer-based security systems on automobiles require some type of key — mechanical or otherwise — to start the engine, so-called ‘keyless’ setups require only the presence of a key fob to start the engine.

The expert gang suspected of stealing two of David Beckham’s BMW X5 SUVs in the last six months did so by using software programs on a laptop to wirelessly break into the car’s computer, open the doors, and start the engine.
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Old 05-03-2006, 02:45 PM
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That's nuts...
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Old 05-03-2006, 02:46 PM
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was just a matter of time...i always thought it was a stupid idea to have no "key" required.


biometrics FTW!
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Old 05-03-2006, 03:32 PM
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Has to be backed by someone at BMW, i cant imagine them reverse engineering the whole ECU & figuring out how all the codes work
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Old 05-03-2006, 03:34 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr. Furley
Has to be backed by someone at BMW, i cant imagine them reverse engineering the whole ECU & figuring out how all the codes work
it prolly doesn't have to do w/ reverse engineering anything...they prolly just monitored the transmissions between a key fob and the car in certain situations, then just replicated them via tghe lappy.
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Old 05-03-2006, 03:51 PM
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Originally Posted by pozzi
was just a matter of time...i always thought it was a stupid idea to have no "key" required.


biometrics FTW!
My dad did some market testing while working for Visa with biometric ATM machines in China. It's a really cool idea... until the bad guys started chopping people's fingers off to get their money.

biometrics FTL.
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Old 05-03-2006, 03:53 PM
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maybe retena scans aren't such a great idea....
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:05 PM
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Originally Posted by pozzi
it prolly doesn't have to do w/ reverse engineering anything...they prolly just monitored the transmissions between a key fob and the car in certain situations, then just replicated them via tghe lappy.
Thats some serious technology
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr. Furley
Has to be backed by someone at BMW, i cant imagine them reverse engineering the whole ECU & figuring out how all the codes work
Because reverse engineering of an automotive ECU has never happened before.

Do you think auto manfacturers just handed over the ECU info so that other companies could make products to reflash ECUs?

Last edited by dz; 05-03-2006 at 04:24 PM.
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:16 PM
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Originally Posted by pozzi



maybe retena scans aren't such a great idea....
Yeah it was developed, but cancelled due to the finger issue.
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:25 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr. Furley
Thats some serious technology
Same reason garage doors and car alarms went to rolling code transmitters. Guys were 'sniffing' the transmissions when the owner operated the device. Then the bad guys would come back and playback the transmission to disarm the alarm or open the garage door.
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:29 PM
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Originally Posted by R4ND0M_AX3
Same reason garage doors and car alarms went to rolling code transmitters. Guys were 'sniffing' the transmissions when the owner operated the device. Then the bad guys would come back and playback the transmission to disarm the alarm or open the garage door.
in highschool my buddy lived in a housing development in EDH that must have used the same generation of garage door openers that my parents installed cus one day we were goofing off and someone hit the button and a garage two doors down started opening.

we then took it upon ourselves to drive around the neighborhood and found about 8-10 more doors it opened.

we never broke in, but it was always fun to get the old man down the street all worked up about his garage just opening and closing on it's "own."

that was hours of entertainment!
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:31 PM
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Originally Posted by dz
Because reverse engineering of an automotive ECU has never happened before.

Do you think auto manfacturers just handed over the ECU info so that other companies could make products to reflash ECUs?
Sure but usually people dont do it in their basement..... if BMW doesnt have some kind of security that would have to be circumvented then so much for german engineering. And if a car theif if smart enough to reverse engineer ECU's then what the hell is he doing stealing cars?
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:40 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr. Furley
Sure but usually people dont do it in their basement..... if BMW doesnt have some kind of security that would have to be circumvented then so much for german engineering. And if a car theif if smart enough to reverse engineer ECU's then what the hell is he doing stealing cars?
just like hackers and viruses...they're developed just to see if they can do it more often than not.
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Old 05-03-2006, 04:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr. Furley
Sure but usually people dont do it in their basement..... if BMW doesnt have some kind of security that would have to be circumvented then so much for german engineering. And if a car theif if smart enough to reverse engineer ECU's then what the hell is he doing stealing cars?
The same reason people hack in to computer systems or write computer viruses, because they can.

Think about it, you rip off a 100K vehicle and ship it out of the country and make even 1/4 the vehicle's value and you have done well for a night's work. Now multiply that by exporting hundreds of these cars a year and you have yourself a crapload of money.

Maybe you would not be so god damn stupid if you cut back a little:
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