Types of Vehicle Theft
Here are the methods commonly used by thieves to steal vehicles in the UK.
Vehicle theft can be broadly put into 3 categories: mechanical, digital, and physical.
Mechanical Theft
Mechanical theft usually involves forced entry (lock picking, window smashing, peal-and-steal), often followed by physical removal of components or theft of external parts (ex. catalytic converters, headlights, wheels).
Ripping out the security system or its components, such as engine immobilisation relays, siren, etc.is usually what mechanical theft involves.
ECU swapping can also be classed as mechanical theft.
Digital Theft
Digital theft is one that does not usually involve forced entry. A high-tech devices is used to compromise factory-fitted and/or aftermarket security on a vehicle. Two most common examples of digital theft are the relay attack and code-grabbing.
The thief scans the factory fob remotely, intercepts the code and their device replicates it, so their device now functions as the car’s factory key, and the vehicle is tricked into thinking that the owner is present. The thief is able to disarm the factory-fitted alarm system (if any), unlock, and start the vehicle.
Physical Theft
Physical theft involves gaining access to the vehicle using physical force (carjacking), trickery, or social engineering.
Obtaining the keys to the vehicle via pickpocketing or property burglary is also a form of physical theft.
Cloning the vehicle’s key at a repair station and installing a tracking device to the vehicle is not an uncommon form of physical theft.
Towing can also be classed as physical theft.
Common Vehicle Theft Methods
How many of these is YOUR vehicle vulnerable to?
Over the last 2 years (2019/2020) we have seen a sharp increase in thefts, and a particularly worrying new trend is the rise of brutal carjackings and vehicle theft via property burglary, both of which put the owner’s physical wellbeing at risk, as there have been dozens of serious injuries and several deaths reported via these methods of theft last year alone.
Tradespeople are a particularly vulnerable group as LCV owners are not only targeted for their transport, but also the contents in the rear. Dozens of tradespeople lose their livelihood every month due to tool theft.
Owners of popular cars with the factory-fitted keyless entry system, are at an increased risk of theft via the so-called relay attack. It is believed that over 50% of vehicles stolen in the UK over the past 2 years were stolen via this method.
Remember!
ALL factory fitted alarms can be compromised in seconds, and over 70% of aftermarket security systems offered in the UK use weak encryption that is vulnerable to interception.
Does your car have keyless entry?
Vehicles equipped with the keyless entry system (push-to-start button0 are particularly easy to steal...
We’ve all heard plenty about the relay attack over the last couple of years. It is said that, in fact, this particular vulnerability of passive entry is responsible for UK’s vehicle theft epidemic that’s produced a massive spike in car crime, mostly affecting new high-end cars — over 50% increase in thefts over the last 5 years! See latest vehicle crime statistics >>>
The relay attack is arguably the quickest and easiest theft method. A high-end vehicle can be compromised in under a minute, the device used is widely available and legal to purchase online, and this ‘hack’ can be executed by anyone – no special technical or vehicle-related knowledge is required.
Catalytic Converter Theft
If you own any of the following hybrid vehicles, you are at an increased risk of catalytic converter theft:
- Toyota Prius
- Toyota Yaris
- Toyota Auris
- Honda Jazz
- Honda Accord
- Lexus 450h
- Mercedez-Benz Sprinter
A catalytic converter can be stolen in as little as 1-3 minutes, and set you back as much as £3,000 in repair and replacement costs…
Non-Keyless Cars & Aftermarket Security Systems
It is not just keyless cars that can be digitally hacked. Non-keyless cars as well as 433Mhz aftermarket alarm / immobiliser systems can be compromised using a code grabber.
Though the principle is basically the same, this method is less common compared to the relay attack, simply because the device (refered to as ‘code grabber’) is more expensive than a relay box. Whilst a relay box costs under 300, a code grabber can cost between 3 and 12K on the black market.
Code grabbers are designed to compromise factory-fitted security systems on non-keyless cars and aftermarket security systems on both – keyless and non-keyless vehicles.
Any 433Mhz factory-fitted security system that uses the the hopping code (Keeloq) encryption is susceptible to signal interception.
Similarly, most aftermarket alarm / immobiliser systems that use dynamic (as opposed to dialogue) encryption can be hacked using a code grabber.
Signal Jammers
Signal jammers are used primarily to disable tracking devices, but also to trick a vehicle owner into locking the vehicle with a physical key (leaving the alarm system disarmed).
Thieves are well aware that many vehicles, especially high-end ones, often have some type of stolen vehicle recovery (tracker) device fitted to them, so many of them come prepared.
The first thing any semi-professional thief would do, is turn on a frequency jammer as they approach the vehicle to be stolen. If there’s a tracking device installed to the vehicle, it will not be able to communicate its location to the owner / a tracking service. Once the stolen vehicle is taken to a remote location, the thief will examine the vehicle and rip out / destroy the tracking device — prior to turning off the frequency jammer.
Frequency jammers are also used to trick the vehicle owner into locking the car manually (i.e. leaving the security system disarmed and the immobilisation – inactive). This works on both – factory-fitted as well as aftermarket security systems. When locked with a physical key, the system is disarmed and there is no engine immobilisation, so it can be started AND driven away in a matter of minutes.
This method is frequently used by thieves in large car parks near supermarkets and shopping centres.
Frequency jamming is also often used for theft of the contents inside the vehicle.
According to this article >>>, most insurance companies will not pay out for such thefts.
Remember that any – absolutely any – frequency can be jammed. Including those often advertised as immune to jamming, such as the VHF frequency. No frequency is immune to signal jammers.
How do you prevent vehicle theft via signal jammming?
The only way to prevent vehicle theft via signal jamming is by introducing secondary authentication.
Secondary authentication is a manual method of disarming that a would-be thief would have no way of knowing about.
Even if the thief gains access to the vehicle and manages to disable the factory-fitter and/or the aftermarket vehicle security system, there is still another layer of security to bypass before the vehicle can be driven.
Carjacking
Carjacking is one of the most common vehicle theft methods in the UK.
Carjacking is a growing epidemic in the UK. Over the past 2 years (2019/2020), we have seen more carjackings, resulting in grievous bodily harm, than ever before as thieves get more brazen and violent.
Carjacking can occur pretty much anywhere. Usually the thieves will target lone drivers, but there have been cases where couples or a parent with a child were carjacked.
High-risk places are quiet residential streets where there aren’t any people around and no heavy traffic, so the thieves can easily make away with the stolen car. Carjackings frequently happen in car parks of supermarkets and shopping centres. Another high-risk location is your own driveway! Thieves will often carjack a person as they’re about to park or as they’re about get into their vehicle, on their way to/from home. It is not an unlikely scenario for carjackers to throw the driver out of their car as they’re standing at a traffic light.
Some carjackers are more creative than others and will use sneaky techniques (social engineering) to get a driver whose car is of interest to them, to stop and get out of the car voluntarily. There have been cases reported where hijackers pose as police or traffic wardens, place obstacles on the road, and pretend to be in need for help in order to get the target to pull over.
UK’s first officially documented death-in-carjacking is thought to have occurred in 2002, when 22-year-old estate agent, Timothy Robinson, was attacked by a couple of teenage carjackers, 17 and 18, and stabbed to death by one of them. This attack was shortly followed by a spate of carjackings, including the vicious South London attack on a woman driver as her £50,000 Mercedes was taken from her as she drove to pick up her children from school.
There have been many serious injuries and several deaths since…
How to prevent carjacking and what to do if you are carjacked?
In the words of Neil Thomas, Director of Investigative Services at AX and a former Detective Inspector for West Midlands Police:
“In my experience criminals are often unimaginative and sometimes the tactics go no further than simply dragging people out of nice cars. However, as vehicle thefts rise, we’ve noticed new methods being used that are much sneakier than using physical violence alone. We urge drivers to remain vigilant and, most importantly, if you are threatened with violence, give up your car – your life is far more valuable than any vehicle.”
You can follow these tips and hope for the best…
1. Six signs you are about to be carjacked… Read More >>>
2. Tips to avoid being carjacked… Read More >>>
3. What to do if you are carjacked… Read More >>>
… or you can opt for a reliable anti-hijack system installed to your car.