You spend a lot of money on a BMW, so it makes sense that you’d want to know whether parking it in a lot or on your driveway at night will be safe. When you get the solution, though, you might not be very pleased.
BMWs are expensive, therefore you would think that they would be nearly impossible to steal. However, most people concur that if a hacker has the necessary equipment and skills, BMWs are fairly simple to steal. Your car might not be able to be stolen by a regular street criminal, but someone with considerable skill will probably find it much simpler. The hacker could only require a laptop and a toolkit to get control of your valuable asset.
BMW acknowledges that it cannot prevent thieves from taking its most recent keyless cars using tools that are easily accessible online. Those keys that you don’t have to put into the ignition appear to be the problem. Your pocket’s keys signal to the automobile that you are in possession of the key fob, and the vehicle complies. Thieves can purchase a relay box online, which stretches the signal from your key fob and bounces it to a person nearby, allowing them to approach your car and drive off.
BMW claims they have no choice but to remain silent in the face of criticism. BMWs previously had a double lock feature, but the business felt pressed to introduce more cutting-edge technology. They unintentionally made it simpler to take the autos.
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Is Stealing a BMW Tough?
In fact, stealing a BMW is not all that easy. Your BMW will be impossible to steal for the typical auto thief. However, a burglar with the correct equipment and past experience can quickly steal your vehicle. BMW performs 16% better than the national average for vehicle theft across the board.
Theft of luxury vehicles like BMWs is a difficult task. These automobiles have security features built to ensure that you cannot simply enter them. You might not be able to remove the car even after breaking the windows.
However, experienced burglars can take your car in a matter of minutes. These folks are aware of how these cars operate, and they can take advantage of that knowledge. They can utilize the signal from your key fob to unlock your vehicle if they have the necessary equipment, such as relays and signal jammers.
But BMW has improved the security of their cars ever since this started happening roughly nine years ago. These days, using those inexpensive hacking techniques to steal a BMW won’t be as simple.
Despite being a favorite choice for thieves, the 2021 BMW 3 Series has been named as the least likely car to be stolen in the US. For the remainder of the lineup, this is largely true. But be careful; if you misplace your key or lock yourself out, you won’t be able to enter your automobile. A new key fob, which can be expensive, and assistance from BMW are required to unlock it.
finding reliable auto insurance
Modern vehicles have excellent security systems that make theft virtually impossible, such as the BMW 3 Series and Tesla Model S.
Modern anti-theft devices have significantly reduced crime rates and discouraged burglars.
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In recent years, powerful anti-theft technologies like GPS trackers have been installed in many cars so that owners can keep tabs on where their vehicles are at all times. Some vehicles will also notify their owners of any suspicious activities and turn on a kill switch to halt the engine.
Even though there have been fewer documented occurrences of car theft since 1990, residents of high-car theft areas typically pay substantially higher insurance premiums than residents of nearby communities. This is not shocking given how expensive it is for insurance companies to settle theft claims.
BMW 5 Series: Never Gets Stolen
There is a misconception that expensive vehicles are the simplest to steal. We are unsure if this is really true, particularly in Canada and the US. The theft statistics for BMW are not comparable to brands like Toyota, Ford, and Chevrolet. It didn’t appear on any particular list of the most stolen cars in either Canada or the US.
True, a lot of car theft involves stealing parts, but the BMW tends to be on the safe side. Among the BMW vehicles, the 5 Series has the lowest crime rate. Only 0.7 out of 1,000 automobiles are stolen. As a result, it is in the top 10 least stolen cars.
How to Steal a BMW in less three minutes by hackers
The bad guys are utilizing technology to steal our beloved four-wheeled buddies as it is being employed to secure cars.
An claimed YouTube video depicts the theft of a BMW 1 Series using a novel method.
The theft happens along these lines. The burglars must first obtain entry to the car. In the video up above, they appear to exploit a weakness in the vehicle’s ultrasonic alarm sensor system to break a window without sending off the alarm. Then, while the thieves are at work, an RF jammer is employed to keep the rightful owner from getting into the car. The bad guys then easily reprogram a new key for the automobile using a readily available key programmer by connecting it to the car’s OBD-II on-board diagnostics connection.
Because cars sold in Europe must permit unsecured access to OBD codes so that independent mechanics can read codes and service vehicles, this hack is made possible. It appears that the bad guys are now taking advantage of this consumer-friendly flexibility.
According to some accounts, this method may have been used to steal up to 300 BMWs this year alone. All BMW series cars, from the 1 to the X6, are reportedly susceptible to this method.
Gavin Ward, the UK media relations manager at BMW, provided the following statement to the auto blog Jalopnik:
All auto manufacturers have a continuing challenge in the fight against more cunning criminals. Desirable, high-end vehicles like BMW and its rivals have historically been the focus. BMW has always been at the forefront of auto security and is continually pushing the limits of cutting-edge defense technologies. To accomplish this, we collaborate closely with the government and other manufacturers.
We are aware of recent allegations that criminal gangs are allegedly targeting expensive cars made by a number of different manufacturers. Investigations are being done in this area.
In order to comprehend any patterns that might appear, we are in continual communication with police forces. Based on this information, we improve our defense systems. Currently, all international legal requirements for vehicle security are met or exceeded by BMW Group products.
Nowadays, it seems that a car’s entertainment system is protected better than the actual vehicle.
Are BMWs frequently stolen?
According to a study of insurance theft claims undertaken by the Highway Data Loss Institute, Subaru’s original crossover sport-utility vehicle is the 10th-least stolen vehicle from the 2016–2018 model years. There have been 22 relative theft claims filed for it, with 100 being the average for all vehicles.
Beetle, Volkswagen
Due to weak sales, Volkswagen will discontinue the current model year’s iteration of the famous Beetle. With a relative theft-claim frequency of 21, it appears to be having problems finding takers among auto thieves as well.
Subaru Forester 8.
With a relative theft-claim frequency of 20, the Subaru Forester is a popular option among compact crossover SUVs but not among auto thieves.
GMC Acadia 7.
With a relative theft-claim frequency of 19, the three-row Acadia is a secure family car that also has a low theft rate. The relative theft-claim frequency for the all-wheel-drive version is 20.
Subaru Legacy 6.
With a relative theft-claim frequency of 17, the third Subaru on this list, the midsize Legacy car, seems to slip burglars’ notice.
Buick Encore 5.
By a significant margin, the tiny Encore crossover sport-utility vehicle outsells every other model in the Buick portfolio. However, the HLDI reports that the relative theft-claim frequency for the Encore is 15.
Chevrolet Equinox 4.
These days, compact crossover SUVs are the most popular vehicle types, with Chevy’s Equinox being among the best-selling examples. However, thieves avoid it, with a relative theft-claim frequency of only 15.
Tesla Model X 3.
The fastest of its kind, Tesla’s electric crossover sport-utility vehicle has a relative theft claim frequency of 12 but is a slow starter among car thieves.
Tesla Model S 2.
With a relative theft-claim frequency of 11 from the 2016–2018 model years, thieves usually disregard the opulent full-electric Tesla Model S’s Ludicrous Mode, which gives it rocket-like thrust.
BMW 3-Series 1.
According to HLDI, the sporty small luxury sedan made by BMW has the lowest relative claim frequency of any vehicle in America, at just 4. There are 100 automobiles on average. A relative claim frequency of 21 indicates that car thieves prefer the all-wheel-drive 3 Series.
How are BMWs taken by thieves?
With a firmly entrenched tongue in cheek and a cynical eye, Absurdly Driven approaches the corporate world.
a bonus for their achievement, their social standing, or even their dedication to social mobility.
Strangely, though, I read a headline this week that made me pause and reflect about my life’s course.
The Daily Mail murmured, “BMW confesses it is helpless to stop thieves from stealing its newer keyless cars using equipment that are easily available online.”
I can finally attain my rightful, superior station in life, and my reward (and happiness) can be taken away from me instantly?
Those keys that you don’t have to put into the ignition appear to be the problem.
They let your automobile know that you have the key fob by sending a signal from your pocket, and as a result, it follows your commands.
On the other hand, thieves can purchase a “relay box” online. The signal from your key fob is extended and bounced to a person nearby the car, who then gets in and takes off with it.
I repeatedly phoned BMW to get its opinion. The automaker remained silent in response.
However, The Mail claims to have seen an email from BMW to a client that contained the following statement: “We cannot take responsibility.”
According to reports, the corporation admitted that it was “powerless” in the face of “the highest level of criminal energy.”
Oh, I’m not sure if it’s the highest amount of criminal energy I’ve ever witnessed to go online, buy a gadget, and then take off with a companion to steal a car in a matter of seconds.
However, David Jamieson, the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner in the UK, is not pleased with the automaker’s strategy.
He told the Mail that BMW’s treatment of the driver was “arrogant and outrageous.”
However, this is a smaller aspect of a larger problem with technology’s quick acceptance of human sloth.
People only want things to be made simpler. It was discovered that inserting a key into a hole was exceedingly laborious.
Of course, these problems aren’t exclusive to BMW. Every manufacturer is adding this alleged “convenient access” to autos.
It’s a part of a desperate attempt to use every technical trick in the book in an effort to thrill.
Some could scoff that the older method of car theft at least had the capacity to cause a commotion when it came to the highest criminal energy BMW break-ins.
When their automobiles are later found with no signs of a break-in, insurance companies start to wonder if the owner is making everything up.
Personally, I’ve found the latest electronics in rental cars to be a little irritating at times.
I constantly forgetting to take the key out of the cup holder after placing it there.
It’s simple to point the finger at automakers, but they would counter that they’re simply providing consumers what they want.