There are no holidays for car thieves. Last August, the Coyote Secure observatory found a doubling of cases registered in France compared to August 2022.
SUVs, main theft targets
“In the last four years, our teams on the ground have never had to carry out so many operations in a month,” the French company that markets a GPS tracker says in a statement.
In July-August, the number of thefts increases by almost 50% compared to the average of the previous months of 2023. The main targets: SUVs with 65% and urban passenger cars with 16%.
Another booming category: hybrids, especially sought after for their exhaust. Coyote Secure notes that thefts have tripled this summer compared to 2022.
This summer, the phenomenon especially affects Ile-de-France (+30%), Auvergne-Rhône Alpes (+73%), Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (+44%).
Electronic theft without theft
Electronic theft remains a popular practice among thieves: by exploiting vulnerabilities in vehicles, it is possible to steal a vehicle without breaking into it.
“Either they have a scanner that allows them to reproduce the opening frequencies of your remote control or, as cars increasingly have hands-free keys, they are capable of capturing your signal to be able to reproduce it directly in your car,” explains Emmanuel Debouzy, director commercial of a Citroën workshop.
Once inside, thieves can start the vehicle using software.
Faced with these new methods, traditional solutions remain effective, such as a physical anti-theft device on the steering wheel. It is also recommended to place the keys in a case that blocks the transmission of waves.
Source: BFM TV
