Keyless theft,
and the pouch that stops it

Most keyless cars stolen from driveways are not broken into at all. The car is tricked into thinking its own key is standing next to it, and it unlocks and starts as it was designed to.

How a relay attack works

1. One person stands near your front door with a device that picks up the fob’s signal through the wall.
2. A second device, next to the car, rebroadcasts that signal.
3. The car believes the fob is beside it, unlocks, and lets the engine start.

It is quiet, it leaves no damage, and it takes under a minute.

The pouch that stops it

A signal-blocking pouch, sometimes called a Faraday pouch, stops the fob transmitting at all while it is inside. No signal, nothing to relay.

Other things that help

• Many fobs can switch keyless entry off; check the handbook.
• A visible steering lock puts off opportunists.
• Keep fobs away from the front of the house.
• Know how many keys exist, and where each one is.

If a key has gone missing

If you suspect a key has been taken, have it deleted from the car. Once it is removed from the immobiliser it cannot start the car, wherever it is. That is covered in what happens to your old keys.