Five ways to prevent keyless car theft

Unlike standard cars where access without raising the alarm requires the key, keyless entry models can be ‘tricked’ into thinking a key is present through a transmitter and receiver device.

If your car’s fob isn’t stored safely, then it can be very easy for a pair of opportune thieves to pick up the key’s radio frequency signal, without having to break into your house. Luckily, however, there are many ways in which you can make it extremely difficult for them to do this and protect your motor.

Here are five methods to easily protect your keyless entry car.

1. Put your keys in a blocking pouch

A blocking pouch, or ‘Faraday bag’ as it’s also known, is an affordable way to prevent remote access to your key fob. The pouch is lined with a metallic material that isolates the fob’s radio frequency and prevents its transmission to relay devices used by car thieves. All you need to do is put your key in the bag, close it up and Bob’s your uncle!

Blocking pouches are universal and fit the vast majority of key fobs, but it’s important to make sure that the whole key is covered for them to work successfully. They can be found both online and in autocentres and they don’t break the bank, with prices around £5 each.

2. Turn off keyless entry on your fob

Most models which come with a keyless fob can have the wireless signal manually turned off. This is a sure fire way to prevent car theft because you don’t need to worry about anyone intercepting the signal.

Turning the signal off is different for each vehicle, but you should be able to find out how inside the car’s manual. If you can’t find the relevant information in the manual you should contact the manufacturer if you own the vehicle, or your provider if it’s a lease car.

For Ford’s MyKey keyless entry system, for example, you can do this inside the vehicle by going into its settings on the dashboard, selecting ‘alarm system’ and then deselecting ‘KeyFree’.

3. Steering wheel lock or alarm

Although wheel locks can be seen as a thing of the past, mechanical devices such as these can be useful as thieves may rely on digital tools when planning on stealing a car.

As well as making it harder for your car to be stolen, wheel locks are also an obvious deterrent because of their size and (sometimes) colour. To top it off, they are affordable too at around only £20 for a standard one.

An alternative to a steering wheel lock is fitting a car alarm. These are a bit more complex as they involve removing panels and wiring through the firewall to connect the alarm and siren – but most autocentres should be able to fit third-party alarms on your behalf.

Fitting a steering wheel lock or alarm may also have the added benefit of reducing your car insurance premiums too.

Remember: if you’re currently leasing your car, you need to look for prior approval from your provider when shopping for these as it could be in breach of your contract.

As key fobs generally have a range of between 5-20 metres on average, storing your keys as far away as possible from entry points could make it harder for thieves to pick up their signal.

This is because the method for relay theft involves a thief standing close to the house with a device to try and transmit the relayed signal from your key to an accomplice’s device. So, by keeping the key as far away from doors and windows and in a Faraday Bag, you’re making it nigh on impossible for thieves to receive the signal.

Remember: take the same approach with any spare keys too, as thieves only need to pick up one signal to gain access to your car. Ideally, if you can, park your car in a secure garage where it’s difficult to get to in the first place. However, If you don’t have this access, you can still position your vehicle somewhere which is as close to your house as possible. For example, if you have off-street parking you could park your car somewhere you can see it easily.

While this doesn’t sound like much protection for your car, when applied with the other methods to secure your keyless entry model, it’s another layer of security.