A social media trend, dubbed the “Kia Challenge,” has appeared to compound the automakers’ problems in recent years, with people posting videos showing how to steal Hyundai and Kia cars. At its height, the Kia Challenge was linked to at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities, according to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
About 9 million vehicles have been impacted by the rash of thefts, including Hyundai Elantras and Sonatas as well as Kia Fortes and Souls. Hyundai and Kia earlier this year agreed to pay $200 million to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by drivers who had their vehicles stolen.
Technology is helping foil car thieves making life miserable for owners of Hyundai and Kia vehicles.
Hyundai and Kia upgraded their cars’ anti-theft tech in early 2023. Vehicles equipped with the enhanced software will only start if the owner’s key, or an identical duplicate, is in the ignition.
The rate at which the Korean automakers’ cars are stolen has fallen by more than half since the companies upgraded their anti-theft software, according to new research from the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI). Hyundai and Kia thefts have soared in recent years after criminals discovered that certain car models lacked engine immobilizers — technology that has long been standard in other vehicles.
Keyless start is fucking awesome though, just get in the car and drive. I wouldn’t even consider a car without after having one with it. Pretty much all other manufacturers have this in a safe way that doesn’t make the cars easier to steal. Its not the keyless start that’s the issue, its how they implemented it.
I mean, many new cars don’t even have an old school key ignition at all.
That’s…not how rolling codes and tight timing requirements work. There are almost zero keyless entry car models that can be unlocked, let alone started, with hardware at the sophistication level of a flipper.
Yeah I did a little homework after I made the comment n realized I was wrong. Didn’t get a chance to go back n remove or fix it.
All keyless start kias and hyundais are/were immune to the Kia boys trick
So what was the exploit then? They could get in to the car without the key?
No engine immobilizer was the ultimate issue. And from what I understand, it was just an issue with models sold in the US, so all this misery was caused by a manufacturer’s cost saving measure.
ETA: To clarify, the cause was a manufacturer’s cost saving measure enabled by the US regulations’ lack of a requirement for engine immobilizers.
A lot of smart key cars are vulnerable to relay attacks. It’s not a solved security issue by any means.
Nobody is fucking doing that, though! This isn’t a “oh I will hack this person using a relay attack” attack, it’s some dumb kids breaking into cars using physical measures. They are NOT going to be using a RELAY ATTACK
What’s more, all keyless cars still have a fob with proximity and if the fob dies, they legally have to have a way to start the car without the fob battery which is why they all have an nfc reader somewhere (usually in a cup holder) so you can put you dead fob on it and the car will start like normal.
