Hacker Disables More Than 100 Cars Remotely | via Wired.com
Bit of a bizarre hacking story, but what’s more disconcerting to me (OK, if not MORE disconcerting than the hacker, how about equally disconcerting?) is that a car dealer in Austin, TX has remote access to vehicles purchased by the dealership. Really? You install a black box in the car that I’m buying JUST IN CASE I don’t make a payment?
The dealership used a system called Webtech Plus as an alternative to repossessing vehicles that haven’t been paid for. Operated by Cleveland-based Pay Technologies, the system lets car dealers install a small black box under vehicle dashboards that responds to commands issued through a central website, and relayed over a wireless pager network. The dealer can disable a car’s ignition system, or trigger the horn to begin honking, as a reminder that a payment is due. The system will not stop a running vehicle.
Sorry boys and girls, but that’s a bit too intrusive. May I suggest that those of you living in or around Austin, TX avoid the Texas Auto Center like the international people-tracking plague that it is.