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Yeah, I considered not carrying the wireless-entry key for my car, because if I lost that key, it would be easy for a thief to walk through the parking lot, pus

Yeah, I considered not carrying the wireless-entry key for my car, because if I lost that key, it would be easy for a thief to walk through the parking lot, pushing the button until they found my car. Ultimately, I decided that I'm unlikely to lose the key. But I don't like the idea that someone could still scan the parking lot, unlocking cars by radio. Opening up more data/control wirelessly isn't necessarily a good thing. You CERTAINLY don't want someone to be able to make your car segfault while you're driving down the highway.

networked 14y ago
>You CERTAINLY don't want someone to be able to make your car segfault while you're driving down the highway. That could make for a great scene in some futuristic hacker movie. On a more serious note, there are many possible solutions to the problem of losing a wireless car entry key. Off the top of my head: 1) Have the user tap out a simple rhythm with the button to unlock the car. Downsides: kind of involved and the rhythm would have to be long to be secure. 2) Put a fingerprint scanner on the key. The one in my laptop is a tiny self-contained module, so I expect it to be possible to fit one inside a wireless car key. Downsides: the scanner can break; can't use in gloves. 3) Have the cars mesh network to detect the "trawling for the right car with a key" behavior. Downsides: complexity; the thief could exploit this to lock you out of your own car. 4) Make the key a wristwatch or a wristband. I think this is the best cheap solution. Downsides: might disagree with your fashion sense.
- ConstantineXVI 14y ago
  What's wrong with putting the second auth method (fingerprint, passcode, whatever) on the car itself? Likely much more durable and keeps the key itself simple.
- ger_phpmagazin 14y ago
  "Person of Interest" had it...
jonknee 14y ago
Keyless entry has been around for a long time and I have not heard of this scenario actually occurring (no doubt it has, but it's certainly not common enough to worry about).

networked 14y ago

>You CERTAINLY don't want someone to be able to make your car segfault while you're driving down the highway. That could make for a great scene in some futuristic hacker movie. On a more serious note, there are many possible solutions to the problem of losing a wireless car entry key. Off the top of my head: 1) Have the user tap out a simple rhythm with the button to unlock the car. Downsides: kind of involved and the rhythm would have to be long to be secure. 2) Put a fingerprint scanner on the key. The one in my laptop is a tiny self-contained module, so I expect it to be possible to fit one inside a wireless car key. Downsides: the scanner can break; can't use in gloves. 3) Have the cars mesh network to detect the "trawling for the right car with a key" behavior. Downsides: complexity; the thief could exploit this to lock you out of your own car. 4) Make the key a wristwatch or a wristband. I think this is the best cheap solution. Downsides: might disagree with your fashion sense.

ConstantineXVI 14y ago
What's wrong with putting the second auth method (fingerprint, passcode, whatever) on the car itself? Likely much more durable and keeps the key itself simple.
ger_phpmagazin 14y ago
"Person of Interest" had it...

jonknee 14y ago

Keyless entry has been around for a long time and I have not heard of this scenario actually occurring (no doubt it has, but it's certainly not common enough to worry about).