Over the past few months there has been a growing number of thefts of all BMW vehicles built between 2004-2012,
accross the UK. All cars manufactured with the cartridge type BMW key fob which slots into the dash with push
button start or comfort access are under threat. Over the past 18 months, we at Secure My Car have been
working closely with a number of BMW owners who have had their cars broken into or stollen by this new threat.
There are a number of security risks with these cars. At the moment, gangs are operating mostly in and
around London, Essex, Northampton and Birmigham areas with hundreds of BMW's being stollen every month.
You tube video of our demo car fitted with a full Viper BMW Package securiy upgrade with all the extras
BMW security upgrade.
Every day we hear of at least one attack on a customers BMW. The problem is now seriously out of control with around 5 cars a night, in each city being taken by key cloning. London, Birmingham and Essex are the worst hit areas. The latest craze is to brake into your car, hack into your cars main brain and clone a new key through the OBD port. They then make it look like a failed attempt or a petty theft by stealing something like your iPod or Tomtom. You then replace the window and locks making your car look new again. When the car is needed they will return but this time armed with the cloned key to your car. The car is then used for ram raids, drug runs and other criminal activity. All cars recovered are checked by BMW. But a third key has never shown up in the cars system. It's almost like they hack into the system and plant a ghost key hidden in your cars brain. One customer had this happen a few weeks ago. They smashed a window and stole his ipod. The car was then stolen 3 weeks later and used in a drug run. It was then found days later in a really bad way.
Channel 4 News - BMW security loophole leads to rise in car thefts
Click on the M3 Cutters banner below for full detail.
CCTV of a BMW 1M being stolen
BMW owners have taken to the internet to complain about the ease with which they feel their cars have been stolen. Once such victim is Vinny Ghalley. His £30,000 BMW was taken from outside his house in Maidenhead at 3am, while he - and his keys - were inside.
Mr Ghalley told Channel 4 News: "It's chilling to think that a car that's supposed to be 5-star security rated can be stolen in 15 minutes.
Car crime has gone down in recent years, but in London, 39 per cent of cars stolen last year were taken without the owners' keys being present
"It was 8.30am and I was getting ready for work, I looked out and saw the car was missing. I thought someone had borrowed it, then it sunk in that it had been stolen.
"I checked the keys. I had the main key in my jacket pocket, and the others I never use. The keys hadn't moved overnight and no-one had got into the house, so they've obviously used some kind of advanced tech to drive car away."
Mr Ghalley had fallen victim to a new type of car crime, as he discovered.
Modern cars are increasingly computerised, and in order to check for problems mechanics plug in to the car's on-board computer. They also use this On-Board Diagnostics (OBD) system to create new keys, by plugging in a computer will which encode a blank key, allowing it to open and start the car.
These computers are used legitimately by locksmiths and car dealers, but have now leaked onto the black market, where criminals are using them.
Car crime has gone down in recent years, but in London, 39 per cent of cars stolen last year were taken without the owners' keys being present, according to the Met Police.
"Vehicles are becoming more and more technological, and criminal networks are becoming more and more savvy to that technology. but as they develop, so will we and in partnership with manufacturers we will design out these problems," the Met's Detective Inspector Paul Fuller told Channel 4 News.
In a statement BMW said: "There is no specific BMW security issue here, this is something which affects many brands, however organised criminals have targeted particularly desirable cars, with higher value parts and that is why BMW is amongst the brands affected.
" our investigations, jointly with the police, have identified M3's and late model BMW X5 and X6 as cars which have been focused on by organised criminals."
How these cars are being stole
From speaking with the police and working closely with our customers, we have worked out how these thefts are being
under taken. As you can see from the video above, they have have a number of ways to steal all new BMW's...
Smashing a window to gain access to the car..
There is an alarm black spot which covers most of the drivers side area of your BMW. If the window is smashed, the thief is free to move around with out the factory alarm activating. This gives them full access to the OBD port mounted in the drivers foot well. CCTV footage has shown on a number of breakings the
factory BMW alarm system has not activated when attacked. The thief then works on the car to clone
a new key for your car in seconds! Most owners also don't know, that if you press the lock button on your remote, then click
it again within 5 seconds, this actually deactivates the BMWs internal sensors. This is normally used when leaving a pet inside
the car. Owners of Vauxhalls, Citroens etc will be used to clicking the lock button twice to lock the doors and activate the dead locks. Even If the BMW factory alarm system does sound on any attack it will
only sound for a few seconds. As soon as the thief clones a new key (normally in a few seconds of smashing the window) They can then press the unlock button which will diasrm and unlock the car. They are then free to slots the new fob into the dash, start the car and drive away.
How do we solve this? The only way to solve this problem is to upgrade your BMW alarm system to a high end
aftermarket Viper alarm system, preferably with a 2-way paging system built in to the remote and upgraded sensors.
This will make it harder for the theif to get into your car unnoticed. Once fitted, if your new alarm system is
activated, your new key fob at a range of up to 2000 feet will flash, beep and vibrate notifying you instantly of
the break in. We can also connect this to your smart phone making the range unlimited. (see www.SecureMycar.co.uk/Smartstart.html for more details)
We also recommend upgrading the sensors on the new alarm system with a dual Proximity sensor. The dual proximity sensor works by creating two invisible bubbles, one inside the
car the other outside the front two windows just inside the wing mirrors. The external zone once broken will warn anyone who comes too close by
beeping the siren 5 times. We normally set this zone just inside the wing mirrors to minimalise false alarms. The
second zone creates an
invisible bubble inside the car. If this zone is broken the full alarm system is activated instantly. We also add to the
alarm package an impact sensor. This sensor will detect a hard impact to the vehicle, for example if the
window is hit to smash the glass,
We sell 5 upgraded sensors.
1) Ultra sonic interior sensors for motion inside the car.
2) Dual proximity sensor with warn away. (Creates an invisible bubble inside and outside the car) Detects motion.
3) Glass break sensor.
4) Tilt and motion sensor, for alloy wheels and detecting the car being tilted, jacked up or towed.
5) Impact sensor/shock sensor. Detects any impact to the car, smashing a window etc.
Secondly, drilling and picking the locks to the car.
We have also heard of cases where the locks have been drilled in a certain way. This then either unlocks the
doors or drops the windows giving the theif access to your OBD port to clone a new key. By attacking the car
this way there is no smashing of glass sound and less chance of the interior sensor activating the factory
alarm. When the lock is picked the factory alarm is also disarmed as soon as the llock is unlocked.
How do we solve this?
Again, by upgrading to a Viper alarm system with a Proximity sensor (motion sensor) proximity sensors detect
movement much better than your standard BMW ultra sonic sensors. With a proximity sensor there are no black
spots as there are with ultrasonics which point to the rear of the vehicle. The New Viper alarm system also can't be disarmed by picking the lock.
Thirdly programming a new key through the cars OBD port..
This is the most important one! Once inside the car, under the dash is an OBD port. This links straight to
the cars main brain and the cars security system. The thieves have managed to source key programming equipment
which allows them in seconds to program a new key to your car. These units are easily sourced on the internet
through ebay and other internet sites and are sold to the public. Once plugged in, it's only a matter of a few seconds
before a new key is cloned. They then press the unlock button on the new remote which disarms and unlocks the car giving the theif full access to your car. They can then slot the newly programmed key into your ignition slot which instantly
disarms your factory BMW immobiliser, including deadlocks, engine immobiliser and alarm siren/sounder. They
can then start your car and drive off with your pride and joy. All these above steps can be done in less than
a few seconds.
What can be done? We can't say too much about what we do but let's just say we immobilise the OBD port when the alarm system is armed. This physically cuts the connection to the cars main brain when the new alarm is armed. This makes it almost impossible to clone a new key protected your car from theift. This is offered
free as part of our Viper alarm package when installed on to a BMW vehicles. Even if the thief does gain access to the car it's almost
impossible for them to shut down the new viper alarm system and/or clone a new key to your car. As an added Extra we alaso add a new Engine immobiliser to the car, which is also controlled by the viper system.
FAQ
A few facts you may not know about your BMW security system.
If you press the lock button on your BMW Remote twice this will deactivate all internal sensors.
Factory alarm system sirens are only 100DB and sounds like a vehicle reversing
alarm system deactivates as soon as a programmed key is slotted into the dash also unlocking doors and deadlocks.
There is no impact/shock sensor fitted to a BMW factory alarm system.
If you don't shut your doors properly or leave them a jar, the car will not lock. This includes the boot.
Full Upgrade BMW Viper alarm Package with OBD port immobiliser
Our BMW - Upgrade Security package
What you get for your money
Our BMW Package includes a 2-way 2000 foot paging remote with engine immobiliser and our all important specially designed BMW OBD port immobilisation (To help combat key cloning). We have also upgraded the system with two sensors. Firstly a dual motion sensor with external warn away. This sensor beeps to warn anyone away from the car and covers the all important black spot in your Fords OEM alarms internal sensor. We can set this sensor to beep only if someone looks through the window minimizing false alarms. Secondly an impact sensor. This activates the alarm if the car is hit in any way.
If you've ever set your factory BMW car alarm off, you would have heard the poor sounding factory fitted siren. The Viper siren is much louder at 120db. It also features a fully adjustable 1-6 tone siren. (Which can also be fully programmed to just 1 tone). We can even program the alarm not to beep when you arm disarm the system making the install as OEM as possible.
The problem with conventional car alarms are that to everyone else, they are just an annoying sound in the night. The only person that cares if a car alarm is sounding is the owner. That's why we included a 2000 foot viper LED (Ghost light) pager key fob in our package. If your alarm system is activated, the pager remote will beep and flash lighting up like an christmas tree, warning you your alarm has been activated. The 2-way remote will also confirm your commands virtually instantly using brilliant flashing hidden GhostLight™ LEDs on the remote. It's range is rock solid up to 2,000 foot , which can be upgraded to a mile range if needed.
We now install all our Viper systems completely independent from the OEM system. With the latest BMW firmware installed onto the alarm, this system can talk to the car digitally and immobilises the car. Once armed you won't be able to deactivate the viper or start the car even with your original BMW remote, as the viper independently immobilises your car. This makes any BMW key cloning or theft of keys useless. So, if you were to arm the viper alarm, then walk up to the car and open the door, the Viper would start to sound. If you then to tried to start the car, even with the BMW key pushed into your dash, the car still will not start. We can also turn off the arm and disarm beeps to make the install look completely factory.
Extra Security we offer in our upgrade package to keep your BMW on your driveway
With the latest key cloning threat we have specially designed an OBD port immobiliser which we include in all our BMW upgrade packages. When the alarm system is armed, the obd port is physically immobilised. The only way to open the port for communication is by using the super code Viper remote. This makes it almost impossible to program a key to your car when the alarm is installed.
Engine immobiliser
We wire an immobiliser which stops your BMW from starting when the new Viper is armed. Even if you have the cars OEM BMW key, you still wont be able to start the car. This takes care of any unauthorised key cloning whilst your car is left with a third party car cleaner or garage. If a key is programmed they still wont be able to start the car.
Every fitting is installed to the highest standard. We use Original BMW harness tape (ordered in from Germany) and the installation itself is second to none. All panels are removed and placed safely in your boot so they will not be scratched. Then every panel and screw is replaced at the end. The install is so factory and hidden you could be fooled into thinking your car came out of the factory with the system fitted.
Remote engine start (optional extra)
Start your cars engine with the push of a button from the comfort of your home or office and it will do it all with elegance, style and intuitive. The car will stay fully locked and still with the vehicle fully protected by the new Viper alarm system. If the worst were to happen the car will shut down and the alarm system will sound notifying you instantly. Engine run time can be set to a time of your choice 0-30min. Only recomendnded for cars with Auto or DCT
Summed up:
Includes One 2 way Responder LED Ghost light up to 2000 foot range remote
System wired completly independant from the factory system Revenger® 6 Tone Siren 120db siren
Extra 2 sensors
Dual Proximity sensor with warn away
Dual impact sensor with warn away
Ford specially designed OBD port immobilisation (designed by us)
Extra Engine immobiliser
Specialist canbus module with latest Ford firmware installed for full digital control of your car
Trunk pop from viper remote
Fully fitted by our Ford focus RS specialist installer
Option to upgrade to remote engine start
SmartStart™ Compatible
The package fully fitted to any BMW Call/email sales@securemycar.co.uk for full fitted prices..
OEM BMW Aalarm system
The oem BMW system stays completely in tact and functional. If for any reason you wanted to use the ford system on its own, you can. Viper alarm will automatically arm the ford system on each activation for double the security.
Fitting
Fitting - We can also come to you. We only charge £55 for mobile fitting up to 125 miles from us. For over 125 miles please email for prices. Your car can also be brought to us near Bristol for installation even on weekends. Appointment only.
Upgrade the system and choose a way to control your new Viper security system
Long Range upgrade remote (included)
Iphone control Bluetooth
Long range - LCD Display
Long Range 2-Way Viper remote with Ghost lights.
If your viper car alarm activates, the remote will instantly sound and flash to notify the owner of the attack. Remote works up to 2000 foot from the car.
Viper Smartstart Bluetooth. Control your Focus RS from your smartphone via Vipers Smartstart app through Bluetooth. When the phone comes within a set distance of the car, the bluetooth automatically connects. The simple on screen buttons allows you to lock/Unlock & remote Start your car(if fiitted) you can also choose to have remote added to the system aswell. Some customers choose to have the app on its own, this way if the Ford keys are stolen from inside the house, the phone still needs to be present to drive the car.
Long Range remote. The LCD remote gives more real time information over your car. If you leave the boot, bonnet or door open the remote will instantly warn you as you leave the vehicle. The screen will show full states of the alarm system at all times, including the temperature inside the vehicle. Another advantage of upgrading the LCD remote is full warn away functions are transmitted to the remote. So even if someone is hanging around your car for too long, you'll know about it.
(already included in package)
Email for prices on upgrade
Upgrade option £100
Optional Extra Sensors
Glass Break sensor
Tilt sensor
Dul Proximity Sensor (included in Package)
Enhance the security of any install with an optional glass break audio sensor, which detects tampering and breaking of the vehicle’s glass using a microphone and a microprocessor, which analyzes the frequency, intensity and timing of intrusion sounds to eliminate false alarms. Detects even “soft breaks” where the glass is shattered quietly, which might not trigger the shock sensor. The 506T adds an additional layer of protection.
Protect your vehicle with an invisible sensing field which detects moving high-density objects (including people) near your car using Radio Frequency (RF) field disturbance technology. Ideal for convertibles, or any application where zone-intrusion protection is desired. Violation of the outer field can provoke siren chirps (or a WarnAway™ message from an optional voice module) while intrusion into the inner zone will trigger the system’s siren - Included in all our Ford Focus RS packages
The 507M Digital Tilt Sensor from Viper is ideal for protecting a vehicle from theft by detecting when the vehicle is being raised by a tow truck or lifted using a jack, in an attempt to remove the wheels or tow the vehicle. The Tilt sensor auto calibrates each time the alarm is armed, referencing the vehicle’s angle of inclination and ensuring the most accurate tilt sensing possible. The 507M is perfect for protecting vehicles with upgraded wheels and tyres.
Glass break sensor £45
Tilt sensor £65
Dual proximity sensor (included in our Pack)
Viper Smartstart packages with Smartphone control & GPS tracking
Our Smartstart package includes everything in our upgrade package above. You will get the extra immobiliser, extra Dual proximity sensor with warn away. As well as our OBD port immobiliser. You can also upgrade with any of the above extra. The smartstart package will connect you to your car via your smartphone at all times. If yoiur alarm system is activated, and your viper remote are out of range, the system will notify you through your mobile phone app instantly. From here you can also track the vehicle at any time.
For full details and demo videos on Smartstart please see below.
We have 2 smartstart packages to choose from
Smartstart package 3 (below)
Package comes with full GPS Smartstart and Reponder LED 2000 foot remote
Above Smartstart package 4
Package comes with full GPS Smartstart and full paging with instant visual notification via the supplied LCD long range remote
Full detail on Viper SmartStart GPS
Vipers Smartstart can be used on your iPhone, android and windows phone. The module itself is installed in your car and then connects to your phone. This will allow you to alarm your Viper system, lock/arm disarm/unlock, Start your car, boot
pop, locate/track as well as give you instant notification if your alarm is activated. This works literally anywhere
in the world. If you also have remote start fitted this will also
start your car.
Smart Start Demo fitted to our BMW M3 Demo car - on YouTube.com
Years ago, when it came to getting the ultimate range on your keyless entry/remote start system there was only one sure-fire solution: put the remote to your chin and press the button (it does actually work) and hope that you’d successfully started or disarmed your vehicle from a few hundred feet away. Today, manufacturers are producing remote transmitters that feature advertised ranges of up to a mile; but even these transmitters face range limitations caused by signal interference and obstructions that decrease the effective range of the remote to just a few thousand feet. But why limit yourself to a few thousand feet of transmitting range when you can lock/unlock or start your vehicle from tens, hundreds, or even thousands of miles away? To test out the ultimate in "remote" vehicle control, we evaluated Directed Electronics latest in automotive convenience, the Viper SmartStart. With the Viper SmartStart system and an iPhone.Blackberry, or Android smartphone, you can control your vehicle from virtually anywhere you have cellular service via an easy to use smartphone-based app.
*Please note Smartstart prices subject to annual subscription of £99 a year
Recomendations from our customers
We have designed this package and perfected it over the past few year. No other company in the UK offers this system as it has been designed, made and tested by us at SecureMyCar Ltd. We also order in specialist canbus modules which work on the BMW complex electrical system. This allows us to control all the cars electronics such as deadlocks, door pins etc digitally through the cars canbus network. I've also designed an OBD port immobiliser with a bit of a tweak. This activates only when the alarm system is armed leaving the OBD port connected and mounted in the same place. This makes it almost impossible to clone a new key when the new alarm is armed. As this system only piggy backs onto the cars can network, it doesn't void your cars BMW warranty. We have also fitted this systems at a number of BMW authorised dealers premisses around the country.
Trackers
Most BMW owners have some sort of Tracker installed to their BMW . Unfortunately I've got some bad news for you. For
those of you with high Tec trackers fitted which notifys you if your car is stollen, well I'm sorry to say these are
basically useless until you actually physically notice your car has been stollen and you contact the tracking company
yourself. A tracker works by unauthurised movement of your car. If a new key has been programmed into your car, the
tracker won't see this as an unauthorised movement as it's started and driven away with the vehicles keys.
We have tracking units which notifys you if your new alarm system is activated via your mobile phone before the new
key can be programmed.These units are armed and controlled by your new viper alarm system. You can then track it via an app
instantly on your phone or by login on to a secure website to locate your car. Anytime any place. You can also set a
Geo fence around your car. If your car leaves this circle in any way at a time set by you, your notified via your phone
SMS/phone app and also emailed instantly.
Extras sensors
1) Ultra sonic interior sensors for motion inside the car.£45
2) dual proximity sensor with warm away. Creates a invisible bubble inside and outside the car. Detects motion.£60
3) glass break sensor £45
4) tilt and motion sensor, for alloys wheels and detecting the car being tilted, jacked up or towed. £60
5) impact sensor/shock sensor. Detects any impact to the car, smashing a window etc. Already built in to all the alarms.
Flashing viper windscreen logo £30 fitted.
Extra security
Thatham approved immobiliser when fitted with an alarm system £160
Acutrac locate and locator alarm £350-£450 fitted with an alarm system
We are authorised dealers and installers for all Acutrac, clifford and viper security systems. We operate a mobile
fitting service which covers most of the UK. We only charge what it costs in fuel to get to you for this service.
But your quiet welcome to come to us in Bristol. It's time to secure your BMW before it's to late.
Clifford car alarms are the leaders in vehicle security with over 20 years in the industry. Clifford have a car alarms to suit everyones needs whether its cliffords cat 1 thatcham approved car alarms to there entry level arrow 5.1 car alarms. The arrow 5.1 car alarms comes with protection to the boot bonnet and doors aswell as dual shock sensor and immobiliser. The clifford arrow 5.1 car alarm can also be fitted to almost every vehicle on the market today. Cliffords next car alarm on offer is the clifford concept 470 which boasts the same features as the clifford arrow 5.1 car alarm but also comes with a glass tampering sensor, tilt and motion sensor and an extra immobiliser. The clifford concept 470 car alarm also comes with two five button remotes when the arrow 5.1 car alarms only come with 3 button remotes. the clifford concept 470 also comes with clifford super bright blue led. Cliffords cat 1 entry level car alarm system is the clifford concept 650 mk2 car alarm system. with dual immobilisation and cliffords legendary daul proximity sensor with warn away. the clifford concept 650 cat 1 car alarm system also comes with cliffords battery backup siren and cliffords anti hijack blackjax system. The clifford concept 650 mk2 car alarm also won best car alarm system and best cat 1 car alarm system in the 2009 me awards. No other cat 1 thatcham approved car alarm comes close the clifford concept 650 mk 2 car alarm. Clifford car alarms flagship thatcham cat 1 insurance approved alarm system is the avantguard 5.5 car alarms system. The clifford avantguard 5.5 comes with clifford dual proximity sensor, tilt an motion sensor aswell as clifford glass tampering sensor. The clifford avantguard 5.5 cat1 also comes with cliffords blackjax antihijack clifford car alarms battery backup siren and is completely programmable through cliffords cliff wizard software. The clifford avantguard 5.5 cat car alarm also comes with remote engine start. at the the touch of a button your car alarm will start your car on those cold winter mornings and warm your car. clifford intellistart module will fit on to any clifford car alarm system including the clifford arrow 5.1 car alarm and the clifford concept 470 car alarm aswell as the clifford concept 650 cat 1 car alarm system. All clifford extra sensor and parts including remote engine start is designed to fit on to any clifford g5 and g4 car alarms. We are based in the bristol city centre and have been fitting clifford car alarms now for over 15 years. We cover mobile fitting in Bristol bath london exeter Birmingham Coventry Leicester Cardiff Newport Gloucester Yate Bristol south west wales essex sussex middlesex luton kent.
Viper car alarms
Viper car alarms are the leaders in vehicle security with over 20 years in the insustry. Viper have a car alarms to suit everyones needs weather its Viper cat 1 thatcham approved car alarms to there entry level arrow 5704 car alarms. The 5204 car alarms comes with protection to the boot bonnet and doors aswell as dual shock sensor and immobiliser. The Viper arrow 5.1 car alarm can also be fitted to almost every vehicle on the market today. Viper next car alarms on offer is the viper 5204 2-way pager, which boasts the same features as the viper 5904 car alarms but also comes with a glass tampering sensor, tilt and motion sensor and an extra immobiliser. The Viper 5904 2-way pager car alarms also comes with two 4 button remote when the arrow viper 5704 car alarms only come with 3 button remotes. the viper 5204 2-way pager also comes with vipers super bright blue led. Viper cat 1 entry level car alarm system is the viper cat 1 480xv 2 way pager alarm system. the viper 480xv car alarm is the only 2wway pager thatcham cat 1 car alarm system on the market.. with dual immobilisation . the Viper concept 650 cat 1car alarm system also comes with cliffords battery backup siren and cliffords anti hijack blackjax system. the Viper concept 650 mk2 car alarm also won best car alarm system and best cat1 car alarm system in the 2009 me awards. No other cat 1 thatcham approved car alarm comes close the Viper car alarm. Viper car alarms flagship thatcham cat 1 insurance approved alarm system is the 480xv with remote engine start added to its car alarms system. The Viper 5701 is the new car alarm from viper security. The viper 5701 hyper alarm system comes with 2 way paging and remote engine start as standard. We are based in the bristol city centre and have been fitting clifford car alarms now for over 15 years. We cover mobile fitting in Bristol bath london exeter birmingham coventry leicester cardif newport gloucester yate bristol south west wales essex sussex middlesex luton kent.
