Criminals arrested for stealing vehicles by hacking keyless technology

Law enforcement agencies collaborated to dismantle a car theft ring that hacked keyless technology to steal vehicles. The criminals manipulated car software to unlock and start vehicles from two French manufacturers. A total of 31 arrests were made, including software developers, resellers, and car thieves.

Europol and Eurojust, in cooperation with French, Spanish, and Latvian authorities, identified a car theft ring that used fraudulent software to steal cars. Evidence shows that the criminals targeted keyless vehicles from two French manufacturers and used a fraudulent tool – replacing the original software of the vehicles – to open the doors and start the vehicles. There were 31 arrests, among which were software developers, resellers, and car thieves.