My anti-theft device is a gearshift. Nobody knows how to drive them anymore.
Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
21–30 of 51 posts
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#22My anti-theft device is a gearshift. Nobody knows how to drive them anymore.
except everyone who didn't learn to drive in the USA.
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#23Too bad there isn't a market for modern vehicles with minimalist, open-source embedded systems. That would be cool.
Writing real time serial DAQ applications that will run for 20-30 years on end on custom 20 year old microprocessor isn't exactly for the faint of heart.
Source: this is part of my job, I work in fuel systems.
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#24Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#25My anti-theft device is a gearshift. Nobody knows how to drive them anymore.
I believe these thieves are looking for valuables left in the car, as opposed to the vehicle itself. The "black box" unlocks the doors, but doesn't necessarily start the car.
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#26This is nothing new. I saw a similar report with a different video over a year ago (couldn't find the link).
Glad I'm not the only one that thought that. Got a serious case of deja vu, almost exactly the same article text, including Texas having confiscated one them.
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
except everyone who didn't learn to drive in the USA.
I love how some people believe that this is a USA-only phenomenon.
Well, I can't say for south american countries or asia, but in europe it is quite unusual for people to _not_ be able to drive stick :)
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#28This is only the tip of the iceberg as far as this kind of thing is concerned (this kind of thing being people relying on software to keep them and their belongings safe).
With peoples' lives at risk and with cars representing huge investments for many people, it's probably about time to get regulation that requires the software systems that are interacting with vehicles to be open to experts at large.
The same goes for things like in-home security software.
The competition should not be in the critical software. That much needs to be standard. The competition should be around fluff, construction quality, body design, brand, perks, horsepower, etc.
How is this kind of thing handled in the medical and aviation industries? How about NASA? Life-critical and safety-critical software isn't something you should hire the lowest bidder to create, nor is it something that should be hidden away in the belief that "obscurity is (the best, and the only) security."
Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#29Re: Thieves Break Into Cars Using Mysterious 'Black Box'
#30This is only the tip of the iceberg as far as this kind of thing is concerned (this kind of thing being people relying on software to keep them and their belongings safe). With peoples' lives at risk and with cars representing huge investments for many people, it's probably about time to get regulation that requires the software systems that are interacting with vehicles to be open to experts at large. The same goes…
> How is this kind of thing handled in the medical and aviation industries?
You need government approval (FDA or FAA respectively) to bring a product to market. Are you sure you want that kind of bureaucratic overhead (and the associated politics) in your car and home alarm?