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      05-09-2017, 11:32 AM   #1
JasH
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Exclamation Comfort Access - beware

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/...f=72&t=1669444

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...0-000-BMW.html

https://www.wired.com/2017/04/just-p...can-steal-car/


"Touching the door handle makes the car communicate with the key, hold laptop near kitchen or front door (two most common places for car keys) and the key will communicate back to the car. Signals captured on laptop, then use laptop to gain entry to the car."
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      05-09-2017, 01:07 PM   #2
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You need some kind of Faraday cage to keep your keys in these days to block the signal, somebody must be selling one.
Fortunately mine doesn't have the comfort access, only key-less starting.
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      05-09-2017, 01:31 PM   #3
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Fortunately mine doesn't have the comfort access, only key-less starting.
I didn't specify it either, because I couldn't see the point of it. Pressing a button to unlock the i8 on the key is hardly an effort. And as you say, its key-less after that anyway.
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      05-09-2017, 04:13 PM   #4
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Quote:
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You need some kind of Faraday cage to keep your keys in these days to block the signal, somebody must be selling one.
Fortunately mine doesn't have the comfort access, only key-less starting.
An illy coffee can (the ones with the tin screw cap lid) does the trick,
at least at home.
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      05-10-2017, 12:40 AM   #5
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I have heard of it too , Ford and Land Rover Discovery Sport seem to be affected badly by these . However, VW cars provide better protection against such thefts .I had seen article but sorry I can't remember where it was
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      05-10-2017, 03:18 AM   #6
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Thanks for posting Jas - interesting read. I have Comfort Access and looks like it would be sensible to start storing the keys in a metal tin having read the articles.

Given its exceptionally good communication range, I also wonder about the security of the Display Key with this kind of radio relay technology. Even if you don't have Comfort Access, but leave your car unlocked in your drive or garage, cunning thieves would be able to easily steal the vehicle.
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      05-10-2017, 03:00 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fishpond View Post
Thanks for posting Jas - interesting read. I have Comfort Access and looks like it would be sensible to start storing the keys in a metal tin having read the articles.

Given its exceptionally good communication range, I also wonder about the security of the Display Key with this kind of radio relay technology. Even if you don't have Comfort Access, but leave your car unlocked in your drive or garage, cunning thieves would be able to easily steal the vehicle.
DisplayKey security is identical to the normal key. Only comfort access changes the security level, due to how it works.

I've always locked my car inside my garage btw, out of habit. And I have plenty of other security, including quite a lot of CCTV.

This is just one of many cameras

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      05-10-2017, 03:17 PM   #8
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I've had keyless entry on a number of cars over the past few years... Once you have had it, you really miss it when you drive cars that don't have it! Let's hope they improve the vulnerabilities with this technology soon as I can't imaging ordering a car without it 😀.
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      05-10-2017, 03:28 PM   #9
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Interesting... have had comfort access on a number of cars (worked better on the M6 as could open the boot/tailgate too).

Have purchased: Phone Signal Blocking Bag for Large Smartphones by Global Care Market® https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00RTA4L..._5B3ezb489YMP3 to help combat this type of crime.... seems like a cost effective solution for the car industry to consider when supplying new vehicles....
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      05-10-2017, 04:04 PM   #10
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That bag is a good idea Would be sensible to use when away from home too but relatively near the car (in shops, restaurant, office etc).
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      05-10-2017, 05:59 PM   #11
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I dunno. This seems to work only in very specific cases. The comfort access range seems to be extremely short. It sometimes won't even register if I'm right next to the car, just because the key is in the wrong pocket of my pants, with my body in the way.

In any caae, I don't keep the key anywhere near the car and my house isn't set up in such a way that anyone could just stroll around the front of it. So, not worried.
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      05-10-2017, 06:01 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasH View Post
That bag is a good idea Would be sensible to use when away from home too but relatively near the car (in shops, restaurant, office etc).
Kind of defeats the purpose of comfort access, which is not having the take the key out of the pocket when approaching the car. (I'm loving it, by the way.) Now, you have to take the key out of the bag ...
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      05-11-2017, 03:00 AM   #13
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Originally Posted by Aye-eight View Post
Kind of defeats the purpose of comfort access, which is not having the take the key out of the pocket when approaching the car. (I'm loving it, by the way.) Now, you have to take the key out of the bag ...
100% agree - way too much hassle. I'd rather take my chances with the thieves...
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      05-11-2017, 03:09 AM   #14
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Originally Posted by Aye-eight View Post
I dunno. This seems to work only in very specific cases. The comfort access range seems to be extremely short. It sometimes won't even register if I'm right next to the car, just because the key is in the wrong pocket of my pants, with my body in the way.

In any caae, I don't keep the key anywhere near the car and my house isn't set up in such a way that anyone could just stroll around the front of it. So, not worried.
I also find the Comfort Access range to be very short... <1 metre in fact - which is perfect for unlocking the car just as you touch the door button.

Likewise based on where we store our keys in the house and the fact that you'd need to get past our driveway's electric gates, I would think that we would be very unlikely to fall victim to this kind of theft.
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      05-11-2017, 03:49 AM   #15
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Agree re hassle - the bag is for keys at night... instead of chucked on the usual table or pot just slipped inside.
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      05-11-2017, 08:07 AM   #16
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The range is indeed designed to be short. What the thieves did in the video was use a signal booster, in the bag they held up.

However, if you car is some distance from your key I doubt even a signal booster would work.
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      05-11-2017, 09:53 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasH View Post
The range is indeed designed to be short. What the thieves did in the video was use a signal booster, in the bag they held up.

However, if you car is some distance from your key I doubt even a signal booster would work.
I suspect the booster will give them plenty of range, I can't imagine they adhere to FCC rules on transmission power. The important thing is likely the distance between the key and the booster they have in the bag. Keeping your key away from external walls is probably a good precaution, as the key hopefully won't have enough range to talk with the booster.
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      05-11-2017, 12:23 PM   #18
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Quote:
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I can't imagine they adhere to FCC rules on transmission power. .


Quote:
Originally Posted by NGR View Post
The important thing is likely the distance between the key and the booster they have in the bag. Keeping your key away from external walls is probably a good precaution, as the key hopefully won't have enough range to talk with the booster.
Good advice
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      03-14-2018, 02:36 PM   #19
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I thought I would add another option (the threat is very real - at least in the U.K.) which is to get your dealer to disable comfort access through coding. It cost me under £100 and is reversible. It would have been easier if BMW made enable/disable a selectable option in iDrive but until then a dealer coding is probably a better defence than metal tins, microwaves or foil-lined wallets.

Cheers FF
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      03-14-2018, 07:20 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasH View Post
DisplayKey security is identical to the normal key. Only comfort access changes the security level, due to how it works.

I've always locked my car inside my garage btw, out of habit. And I have plenty of other security, including quite a lot of CCTV.

This is just one of many cameras

JasH, I re-read this old post as a way to pass the time until my i8 gets here (are you seeing a trend with me?). Regarding your car security, wouldn't the best option for you be to buy a cheap VW-based kit car, with an imitation La Ferrari body so that anyone who might be tempted to steal from your beautiful stable of cars would take that one first? Admittedly there is the chance that said thief upon starting the car might quickly realize that the engine note doesn't quite sound like the prancing horse, but at that point, he is probably pretty well committed to taking the car. He'll sure be surprised, though, when he gets it out on the open road and realizes he can't overtake a Kia Optima

P.S. Have you filed a missing person's report yet for Clarkson?
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      03-15-2018, 05:58 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FrequentFlyer View Post
I thought I would add another option (the threat is very real - at least in the U.K.) which is to get your dealer to disable comfort access through coding. It cost me under £100 and is reversible. It would have been easier if BMW made enable/disable a selectable option in iDrive but until then a dealer coding is probably a better defence than metal tins, microwaves or foil-lined wallets.

Cheers FF
Disabling Comfort Access would be like living without a dishwasher! I find having CA to be such a convenience ...so I am happy to take my chances given the risk.

Whilst it would be a massive inconvenience if the car was stolen, that's what insurance is there for imo.
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      03-15-2018, 12:50 PM   #22
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First post here (though I've been on the BMW forums for a while) and I have to agree on the ease of use with comfort access. I bought '15 i8 a couple of weeks ago and the reason I got a '15 and passed up a screaming local deal on a '14 was comfort access. I traded in my F10 M5 which had all the bells and whistles including comfort access and having gotten used to it I did not want to be without it. I hate fumbling around for keys which I have to do with my company vehicle. Now if only I could open the rear hatch of the i8 by passing my foot under the bumper like I could with the M5...

By the way, even though the i8 has more than a 200 horsepower deficit to my M5 it feels pretty darn spunky. Love that instant torque. I have to chuckle at all the naysayers who say that this car is not fast enough. Most of them have probably never driven one.

Last edited by MichaelJohn; 03-15-2018 at 01:02 PM..
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