LISTEN: Thieves using modern tech to steal cars

SALT LAKE CITY — Three men arrested at the Salt Lake International Airport in connection with a coordinated carjacking operation revealed a more modern, high tech approach used by car thieves.

Salt Lake City police found a laptop, signal communication hardware, and a key fob programming device. 

Detective Dalton Beebe said thieves are adapting technology to steal.

 

 

“As car technology increases, theft technology will also increase,” he said. “You’ll see a natural pattern.”

According to longtime Honda Master Technician Josh Martin, this setup mirrors methods thieves use to intercept garage door signals.

“They should be looking for the frequency of the car. Every time you push a button on a fob, it emits a frequency and then it will talk back to it,” Martin said.

Martin said the older the car, the less likely you’ll have that type of theft because it’s outdated coding modern cars no longer use.

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