Smart keys will make cars easier to steal.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) in the US has warned that vehicles using smart keys can be easily stolen without leaving a trace.

The NICB reports that a "mysterious device" is being used by car thieves that can make your car disappear without a trace. This device detects and steals a vehicle's radio frequency within a 3-meter range and transmits the information to a device called a "relay box," allowing it to unlock the car doors and start the engine as if it were the owner's vehicle.

The NICB partnered with retailer CarMax to test 35 different vehicle models and successfully unlocked 19 cars. Of these, 18 were driven away, and 12 could be restarted immediately after the engine was turned off again. The NICB stated that there is no data on the number of vehicles stolen because the technology leaves no evidence behind. It is known that the NICB had previously warned about a similar device in 2014.

Joe Wehrle, CEO of NICB, said that while the device might not be effective for all car makes or models, it's certainly enough to allow thieves to target a wide range of vehicles and steal them relatively easily. The scariest part is that there's no warning or reasonable explanation for the owner unless the theft is captured on security camera footage. Many victims simply thought their car was towed away for a parking violation or something similar.

Perhaps the biggest drawback of this device is that the thief would have to stand close enough to the car to steal the unlock code. However, the chances of finding out would be even lower in countries with few surveillance cameras, like Vietnam.

According to TNO