Company shares security tips on illegal jammers
JOHANNESBURG – Criminals abuse this technology by pressing and holding their remotes at exactly the same time as an unsuspecting vehicle owner is endeavouring to remotely lock his or her car.
There has been a lot of attention given to remote signal jamming in the news of late where criminals target motorists or residents.
Signal jamming is a highly illegal practice of jamming a remote control device used to open garage doors, entrance gates or cars.
The problem, according to the device manufacturing company, Centurion, in North Riding, is the technology behind it.
Read: Tips on how to combat vehicle jamming
Charl Mijnhardt, a communications coordinator at Centurion, said remote control transmits an RF signal that is picked up by a receiver.
Mijnhardt explained that the receiver, which is basically a tuned circuit, converts this signal to an output which will then be used to operate a gate motor, activate a car’s central locking, or whatever the case may be.
He said in South Africa, the frequency band on which all remote devices operate is 433MHz, as decided by the regulator for the South African communications sector, ICASA.
This band is shared by all RF devices, he said.
“Criminals abuse this technology by pressing and holding their remotes at exactly the same time as an unsuspecting vehicle owner is endeavouring to remotely lock his or her car, or to arm the vehicle’s alarm, and in so doing leaving the car vulnerable to intrusion,” explained Mijnhardt.
Read: Fraudsters targeting victims of vehicle theft
“It must be remembered that the signal sent out by these transmitters is comparatively small and can thus be swamped by interfering signals. Any remote control operating at 433MHz can be used for signal jamming, irrespective of who the manufacturer is.”
Mijnhardt said gate motor manufacturers could implement revolutionary code-hopping technology to prevent ‘code-grabbing’.
“Remote controls using code-hopping technology never transmit the same signal twice, dramatically increasing the security of RF communication and rendering code-scanning devices completely useless.
“However, even these highly secure remotes are required to operate at a frequency of 433MHz, and as such criminals have been known to use them for signal-jamming.”
Given the solution, the specialist claims that most vehicle manufacturers equip their cars with some sort of confirmation signal such as a beep or flashing headlights to indicate that the vehicle has been securely locked or the alarm has been armed.
He recommended that all vehicle owners listen carefully for these confirmation signals before leaving their vehicles unattended.
Read: Two nabbed for theft by Bramley police
“They need to remain acutely aware of their surroundings at all times because it is better to adopt a pro-active approach when dealing with this new breed of tech-savvy criminal.”
Details: charl.mijnhardt@centurionsystems.co.za
