It seems that we, here at Wireless Waffle are having a bit of a spate of 'told you so' type events at the moment. Last month we spotted that Vodafone had been rapped over the knuckles for their crafty roaming fee shenanigans. Now we have spotted that Ofcom have been called out to assist drivers who couldn't lock or unlock their cars due to radio interference.

On various occasions we have discussed how straightforward and relatively widespread the jamming of the frequencies used for your car keyfob is. Last time we discussed this it was because some miscreants had latched onto the idea and were stopping people locking their cars so that they could easily break in (more like stroll in) and take whatever they found in the glove compartments, foot wells and boots of the rich and not-so-rich.

The Ofcom story is even more worrying as it suggests that jamming these devices is far easier than even we though possible. In addition to the car keyfobs we are so keen on discussing, the same frequency range (433 MHz) is also used for a wide variety of other wireless devices including wireless doorbells. These devices are relatively low power (10 milliWatts) and the idea is that they shouldn't interfere with each other as the range of transmission is very small. It seems, however, that a button on one such doorbell got stuck in the 'on' position, meaning it was constantly transmitting. This was enough to stop people in the vacinity locking and unlocking their cars. Thankfully, the brave Ofcom engineers were able to track down the problem and sanity was restored. Hurrah for Ofcom!

Far be it for us to opine on the implications of this, but taking the earlier example from the BBC in which miscreants were jamming car locks but haven't Ofcom just provided these folk (and others with a similar inclination) with a simple, cheap and undetectable means of achieving the same outcome?

Just get hold of the push-button part of a wireless doorbell, put this in your pocket, and wander around a car park where posh cars park (maybe even buy a hi-viz jacket so it looks as if you are meant to be there). If it's a supermarket car park, collect a few trollies whilst you're waiting. When a particularly rich looking owner appears, go and stand close to their car and as they get out and get ready to press the button on their key to lock it, activate the wireless doorbell button. 'Hey presto', the car won't lock and you will be able to help yourself to their Gucci loafers and other luxury goodies.

From a radio spectrum management and perhaps more specifically a Wireless Telegraphy Act perspective, no law has been broken. From a Theft Act perspective, however, you still stand to be charged (or sit, depending on the layout of the court room).

Thanks Ofcom!



Posted using my gold-plated iPhone X, whilst wearing Gucci loafers and sipping Bollinger RD '85 on my luxury yacht moored in Saint Tropez with my 3 Aston Martins parked alongside.

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