Volvo Fights Back Against Car Thieves with Relays
Volvo has created a way of hindering car thieves that employ signal-jamming, courtesy of a new patent recently discovered by CarBuzz at the US Patent and Trademark Office. This patent provides an additional security measure for remotely locking and unlocking the Volvo XC90 when in congested areas.
Signal interference is a general term that encompasses any type of electronic signal interception or alteration of a car’s remote or keyless entry feature. Historically, this was done by blocking the transceiver’s signal to lock a car or by duplicating the signal to unlock a secured vehicle. However, newer formulas use what’s termed as ‘dynamic passwords.’ Subsequently, savvy criminals are beginning to resort to relay attacks with the intention of obstructing information from reaching the automobile and thus using an authorized transmission which the motor will accept. In order to counter these strikes, Volvo has inaugurated multi-level protection that may involve a sound-based precaution in the key fob (or for vehicles which have phone-as-key technology, on their smartphones/smart watches) to forbid such robbers.
The response from Volvo is founded upon dialog back-and-forth between the vehicle and its access mechanism, in addition to space calculations and period approximations based on the power of additional acoustic sensors.
The automobile initiates by transmitting an identifiable signal along with its timestamp to the access gadget utilizing a Bluetooth connection, which is afterwards sent back to the automobile to validate the initial communication. Thereafter, the vehicle creates a separate and distinctive identification, forwarding it to the access device where the acoustic receivers placed in the corners of the car measure the delay in response and check the newly-generated unique identifier.
Envision, this as a two-fold validation system for your vehicle, employing Bluetooth like the primary passcode and the acoustic examination being a backup safeguard.
Taking into account the well-known shortcomings of phone-as-key technologies, an additional security level is immensely critical.
The essential point here is the acoustic reaction time lag, which is fundamentally identical to echolocation utilized by bats. Provided that this break is underneath a decided brink and detected before the access gadget leaves the sound system’s recognition scope, it will think of the key fob/phone/watch to still be close by and award access. Yet if the delay is more prolonged, it means the key is further away. In light of this, the system will attempt to relate the Bluetooth association with the separation of the acoustic identification framework, and if there is agreement, then you’re ready to go.
But when the auto-mobile perceives that Bluetooth and sound waves are at opposing geographical distances, or emanating from different sources, it will comprehend that there is an individual who is attempting to meddle remotely. As such, entry to the vehicle will be prohibited.
This hinders any individual from sitting in a nearby conveyance and disrupting the signal to your car, verifying that both the central and auxiliary signals have originated from the same location.
The sole manner through which a jammer might manage to outdo this system is to accompany the proprietor of the vehicle and interfere with the emission while in motion, making it unmistakably visible as well as remarkably dubious.
It’s indisputable that clever malefactors will eventually manage to thwart this extra security layer; yet, necessitating multiple credentials and incorporating time-related details, entrance is much more intricate than with usual keyless entry methods.
Until facial recognition lock technology is adopted as standard on all automobiles, this could very well deter wrongdoers from attempting to enter your Volvo.
