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Keyless car theft prevention: 6 ways thieves can break into a car and how to prevent it

Published 28 November 2022
By Sunday Times Driving
The days of hotwiring cars are long gone. Today’s thieves use a variety of sophisticated techniques to gain access.
Ford introduces key fob with "sleep mode" that prevents keyless car thefts

Key fob signal blocking explained

Some of the recent surge in car thefts has been attributed to the rise of keyless entry. Here's how to reduce the chances of it happening.
Published 24 November 2021

Car thefts increase after lockdown

Easing of coronavirus lockdown leads to 32% increase in car thefts according to Tracker
Published 24 August 2021
Car thief

London boroughs nine of top 10 car theft locations

The top 20 locations in the UK for car theft have been revealed in a new survey, and it’s not good news for motorists living in London.
Published 14 July 2021
How is keyless car theft affecting insurance?

How is keyless car theft affecting insurance?

With more and more cars becoming keyless, car thieves are shifting their focus with increasing success. This, inevitably, is affecting insurance.
Published 06 October 2020

Keyless car thief ordered to pay £1.3m+ fine

A convicted criminal from Croydon has been ordered to pay a seven-figure fine for his role in a number of keyless car thefts.
Published 02 December 2019
Ford Focus ST smart key fob keyless start and entry upgrade

Motion sensor fobs 'short term' fix for thefts

Motion sensor key fobs may not be the panacea motorists were hoping for after they were described as a short term fix.
Published 12 November 2019
Keyless car thefts help push insurance claims to seven-year high

Keyless car thefts cause insurance claim surge

The Association of British Insurers says keyless thefts have helped cause stolen car claim costs to double over the last five years.
Published 31 May 2019
Car thefts increased 9% last year

Car thefts increased by 9% last year

The number of car thefts rocketed by nearly 9% in 2018, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Published 25 April 2019
Ford introduces key fob with "sleep mode" that prevents keyless car thefts

New anti-keyless theft fob from Ford

Ford has launched a new key fob that the company claims makes its cars impervious to "relay attack" thefts.
Published 10 April 2019

Mixed results in first new car keyless tech tests

In tests conducted by Thatcham Research, nearly two thirds of the assessed vehicles were found to be susceptible to keyless car thefts.
Published 22 March 2019
The Sun reporters steal 10 keyless cars in seconds with legal gadget

Reporters 'steal' 10 keyless cars in seconds

Reporters from The Sun newspaper managed to steal 10 cars in "a few moments" using a legal gadget than can unlock the doors and start the engines
Published 12 February 2019

Car thefts up 49% in five years

New data from the Home Office shows 111,999 vehicles were stolen in the UK in the period 2017-18, up 49% in five years.
Published 28 January 2019