Car thefts on the rise – Signal relaying and how to prevent it
**A contributed post as written for The Safe Driver by .
Back in the day, you may have used a steering wheel lock, wheel clamp or relied on your driveway gate or folding security post to keep your car safe when you left it, and granted, many of these are still effective measures.
But this is the 21st century, with 21st century criminals that have access to modern technology that beats even prestigious car manufacturer’s security. Gone are the days of coat-hangers and half a tennis ball to break into a vehicle (unless it’s particularly old). Nowadays, a thief can pick up the gear online for a small outlay and they’re driving off with your pride and joy in less than 60 seconds.
How are they doing it? It’s annoyingly simple, actually: all they do is relay the signal from your key to the car via a radio relay set. As far as the car is concerned, your key is nearby and is being used to open the car, even start it in the case of keyless start cars.
Many keyless entry fobs emit a low-energy signal which is used as a ‘digital handshake’ between the car and the holder (ideally you). All it takes is a relay to carry that same signal to the car to unlock it, and with many models, start the car.
No alarm, the steering lock is disengaged and the car is gone. Unless you’ve a home camera surveillance system installed, the only evidence that anyone had been there is you’d have no car anymore.
So what’s to stop it? Well, there’s a simple modern solution that the luxury fashion bran Vanacci have engineered to shield 
your key from such nefarious activity. KeyBlock is an RFID blocking key case suitable for remote entry keys (where your key is built into the remote) and for keyless entry cars, blocking the frequencies from even leaving the case. Anyone looking to scan for signals won’t find them, thus removing the threat of key relay theft.
After taking a look at what was already available and also receiving requests for an RFID-blocking key case, we saw that most options were either a metal box or a cheap fabric pouch, which we didn’t think was particularly appealing or practical.
With KeyBlock, we’ve taken leathers from across the automotive industry and applied them to the overall look of the case while adding layers of RFID-protection beneath and out of sight. What’s more, you can even personalise the case with your choice of engraving.
Developed to store practically any car key fob and keyless entry key, KeyBlock is a modern and elegant solution to a modern and unscrupulous threat. You can find out more and get yours here: http://kck.st/2FQruTA