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Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

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Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#21

Imagine if a city sued homeowners because it’s their fault for calling the police after a break-in, because they used a deadbolt that failed the LockPickingLawyer. This is about equally as sane. Yes, yes, I know that Hyundai and Kia vehicles are easy pickings, but they talk as though “those vehicles are easy to steal, so those teenagers, they just felt so compelled to…” Nobody forces somebody to steal a car. If anti-…

This situation is more like a deadbolt with a cover that could be pried off with your fingers, and then could be opened by any key shaped object once the cover is off.

Maybe to put in software terms - a login page that allowed anyone to sign in to any account by viewing source and finding an admin login button sitting there for anyone to see.

It truly is a flawed design. Yes, a design that might not be flawed for many societies around the world, but it's certainly flawed for a product that is sold in the USA.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#22

[flagged]

Yeah, I've seen "The Wire" too, I get that people totally ignorant of what life in my town is like will overindex on that. But honestly, this is just an embarrassingly ill-informed take. You'd do exactly as well to defend an email provider whose exceptional account takeover rate derives from the fact that they don't support passwords.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#23
post #11

[flagged]

When it doesn't happen with any other makes, yes! Cost cutting out industry standard anti-theft tech should be the car companies responsibility. Also....17 other local prosecutors, not just Baltimore.

"industry standard". What standard? You mean the federal vehicle standard, which didn't require cars to have immobilizers?

Or do you mean that because Hyundai/Kia didn't do what other companies do, that the government has the right to fine them? If yes, then what is the federal standard for?

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#24
post #5

How is it Hyundai's fault that people steal cars? It's acting as if theives are some force of nature that we can't control or something. You prevent theft by putting theives in jail. It's not complicated.

Consider reading the article The concerns are valid >Certain Kia or Hyundai models can be stolen using a screwdriver and a USB charging cord. >Cleveland, St. Louis and Seattle are among the other cities that started suing the the car companies earlier this year. Baltimore’s lawsuit says the companies “failed to keep up with industry standards,” and claim it was a result of business decisions made to reduce costs and…

>“Hyundai and Kia’s decision to put cost savings and profits over public safety has had significant consequences for Baltimore and its residents..."

Hyundai has some of the safest, most efficient small cars on the road, for great prices. I'd say these things are a net positive to "public safety" over all.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#25
post #5

How is it Hyundai's fault that people steal cars? It's acting as if theives are some force of nature that we can't control or something. You prevent theft by putting theives in jail. It's not complicated.

Consider reading the article The concerns are valid >Certain Kia or Hyundai models can be stolen using a screwdriver and a USB charging cord. >Cleveland, St. Louis and Seattle are among the other cities that started suing the the car companies earlier this year. Baltimore’s lawsuit says the companies “failed to keep up with industry standards,” and claim it was a result of business decisions made to reduce costs and…

Are the spikes of car thefts similar across all cities? Every large city has Kia and Hyundais, you would think this would be a nationwide phenomenon.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#26

Imagine if a city sued homeowners because it’s their fault for calling the police after a break-in, because they used a deadbolt that failed the LockPickingLawyer. This is about equally as sane. Yes, yes, I know that Hyundai and Kia vehicles are easy pickings, but they talk as though “those vehicles are easy to steal, so those teenagers, they just felt so compelled to…” Nobody forces somebody to steal a car. If anti-…

LockPickingLawyer is highly skilled, and can defeat locks that most others can’t.

This is like selling one of those old Kryptonite locks that could be defeated with a Bic pen. At that point, the lock is truly defective, and should be pulled from the market. Your lock should require something more than a readily-available, vaguely key-shaped object to operate—so if you can operate the lock with a Bic pen (like the old Kryptonite locks) or a USB charging cable (like the new Kias), the lock is defective.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#27

even after reading the article this lawsuit makes no sense. inherently a car that can easily be repaired can easily be stolen. the implication is that Baltimore does not want cars that can easily be modified so they cannot easily be stolen. troubling to say the least. then again, baltimore isn't exactly the pinnacle of governance. take the iphone for example, which are notoriously difficult to use if stolen. the resu…

I don't think that's necessarily the case. My understanding is that the part that they omitted was some sort of chip. Soldering in a new chip is something that could be easily done by someone making repairs but which would be difficult for someone to do during a theft.

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#29

even after reading the article this lawsuit makes no sense. inherently a car that can easily be repaired can easily be stolen. the implication is that Baltimore does not want cars that can easily be modified so they cannot easily be stolen. troubling to say the least. then again, baltimore isn't exactly the pinnacle of governance. take the iphone for example, which are notoriously difficult to use if stolen. the resu…

Are you saying Hyundai and Kia did this so the car is more easily modifiable? Are they known for making more repairable cars? Are they framework laptop of the car world? Or merely cheap carmakers who found the wrong corner to cut and save costs?

Re: Baltimore sues Hyundai, Kia over spike in car thefts

#30
post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Consider reading the article The concerns are valid >Certain Kia or Hyundai models can be stolen using a screwdriver and a USB charging cord. >Cleveland, St. Louis and Seattle are among the other cities that started suing the the car companies earlier this year. Baltimore’s lawsuit says the companies “failed to keep up with industry standards,” and claim it was a result of business decisions made to reduce costs and…

The article sounds like if you leave the door open you should assume anybody will enter and steal you. This is reversing the victim to the victimary. In a sexist way would be similar that you are being raped because you wear some specific clothes. Or you are hacked because you don't apply a patch.

It's not an appropriate analogy because Kia is not the victim. They are responsible for securing their vehicles appropriately.
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