Existing owners can remotely unlock their car without a key, as long as they have a compatible smartphone and car. Apple updated the Wallet ecosystem in 2020, allowing users to add car keys digital.
This allows owners to remotely access their car with their iPhone or Apple Watch. They can also give car access to a spouse, babysitter or guest.
Google also makes it possible for Android users to unlock and start their cars with their Pixel 6 phone or any other device running Android 12.
Digital car locks are very convenient, especially since users only need to recognize their faces or passwords on their smartphones to lock, unlock or start their car. While easy to use, digital car keys can be potentially problematic.
Open the car door with a digital key using Near-Field Communications (NFC) technology. Photo: Shutterstock
According to British vehicle tracking system provider Tracker, at least 93% of the vehicles it recovered in 2020 were stolen through an attack on a company’s security vulnerabilities. digital key. This often happens when car thieves intercept the RFID signal from a key with a hacked device to gain access to the owner’s vehicle.
Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology is a short-range, wireless communication protocol that uses radio waves, similar to Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections. This technology helps to better resist attacks on vulnerabilities.
Unlike RFID signals, UWB technology is more accurate in calculating the proximity of a digital car key on a smartphone. Despite the security benefits, not all cars that are compatible with digital car keys will adopt UWB technology.
Some car manufacturers like Tesla, Hyundai or Lincoln use digital car keys based on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Near-Field Communications (NFC) technology.
Digital car keys using BLE technology can communicate with cars at a longer range than UWB technology. For NFC technology, if you have a smartphone, you need to hold it a few centimeters from the car door to unlock it.
Besides, NFC technology can help users use digital car keys even when the battery is out. Since digital car keys with BLE communicate over longer transmission distances than UWB technology, they are more susceptible to security breaches.
Open car door with digital key on smartphone. Photo: Shutterstock
Those potential security holes can be solved if the digital car key supports UWB, BLE and NFC simultaneously. The thing is, it may take a while before most cars are compatible with UWB technology as it is more expensive than BLE technology.
The biggest potential security risk would be someone stealing the car owner’s smartphone and using it to access the car. At that time, measures to disable password or biometric verification are needed.
Next, you need to set the option to track lost smartphones or deactivate digital car keys. While there can be some risks with digital car keys, for now keys using only NFC or BLE technology seem to be a reasonably secure way to protect your car.
at Blogtuan.info – Source: Soha.vn – Read the original article here
