SHOCKING footage shows the moment a group of thieves break into a car through the headlights and drive away – in under 30 seconds.
Sarah Whelan, 51, had owned her Toyota CHR for just two months before crooks managed to hack into the hybrid vehicle last May.
It is believed that the hooded men used the method of “headlight hacking”, which involves removing the bulb and accessing the computer system by plugging in a dark web device.
The device replicates the car’s key fob and sends validation signals to a sensor responsible for unlocking the car.
CCTV appears to show the group accessing the front lights before two of the robbers are able to enter and drive away during the night-time raid.
The brake lights come on just 20 seconds after the pair get to work, with the vehicle pulling away from the drive moments later.
Sarah, who lives with her wife Kelly in Coventry, West Midlands told the Sun: “I got up for work on the Monday morning and it had gone.
“I literally left my house and turned the corner to see nothing was on the drive.
“I felt angry and upset, really. I had memory bears in the car for my mum who passed away and stuff like that.
“It’s not just that they took the car, it’s the things that can’t be replaced.”
Sarah had never seen or heard of “headlight hacking“, which was later revealed on a neighbour’s CCTV camera.
She said: “It was a complete shock to be fair. But then once you Google it, it happens all over the place.”
“People are always saying to leave your keys somewhere safe. My keys were still sitting in my house and my car was gone.”
The disgruntled mum-of-one added that the incident had raised concerns about the safety of the area.
She said she now felt paranoid about her new car getting stolen, and had filled it with hidden tags.
The analyst, who works for a vehicle manufacturer, added that she had also been impacted financially, as her insurance had now gone up.
She then went on to slam Toyota, saying she “deeply regretted” buying a car from the Japanese manufacturer.
The car is worth £30,000 when new, but was purchased second-hand for around £14,000.
“I’m just so disappointed with Toyota,” she said. “They need to be held responsible.
“It’s just not right that a vehicle can disappear off your drive in a matter of seconds.
“I just feel like they’re letting people down by selling cars that are so easy to nick.
“Looking back now, I wouldn’t go anywhere near that brand. I wouldn’t have bought it if I knew how easy it was to steal.”
Sarah said she had received a crime number and a few emails from Warwickshire Police after reporting the incident, but had since not heard anything further.
When contacted by the Sun for comment, a Toyota spokesperson said: “We take the issue of Toyota vehicle theft very seriously.
“We are continuously developing technical solutions to make our vehicles more secure, to help reduce the risk of theft.
“An enhanced security hardware system was introduced in October 2021 on the latest models targeted by criminals. Since which, we have seen a significant drop in thefts of those models.
“For older models, we endeavour to create solutions that can offer enhanced protection to our customers.
“Following significant investments by Toyota GB, in line with that of other vehicle manufacturers, newly developed official Toyota security hardware components will very soon be available to fit, via our Retailer Network, to those targeted models registered before October 2021.
“As a vehicle manufacturer, we can never completely eliminate the risk of vehicle theft. This is an industry-wide issue, concerning all vehicle manufacturers and affecting the most popular models first.
“In order to further reduce the theft risk, we regularly collaborate and share information with insurance associations, police and law enforcement authorities, theft prevention experts and other key stakeholders around the world. This enables us to understand new threats and techniques used by thieves and develop more secured systems.
“Alongside our efforts, we urge those authorities to focus on reducing the number of thefts.
“We would also like to see action taken that leads to the end to the online sale of devices used by criminals to steal cars without using the car keys, as these devices serve no purpose other than a criminal one.”
Warwickshire Police has also been contacted for comment.
Have you had your car stolen? Email amelia.stout@thesun.co.uk or call the news desk on 020 7782 4100.
What is headlight hacking and how can you avoid it?
How does it work?
Every vehicle has a Controller Area Network (CAN) bus system – this is what the car’s Electronic Control Units (ECUs) use to communicate with one another.
The majority of a vehicle’s CAN bus system sits in the middle of the car, but headlights for newer cars require their own ECUs because they’re so advanced.
To access it, criminals can trim pieces away and even pull bumpers from most vehicles to get to the headlights.
Using what’s called a CAN injection, thieves then hijack the control system to get access to your car.
The injection is then plugged into the CAN bus system through the headlights on many modern vehicles like the Toyota Rav4 with a tool allegedly disguised as a JBL Bluetooth speaker.
After being wired in, the tool tricks the car into thinking that it is the remote key fob.
The fake JBL speaker tool then allows thieves to simply press the play button on the device to unlock the car doors through an ECU connection.
Another button pressed on the tool after it’s wired into the system can also start the car.
After that, the thief can get in and drive away without ever having been near the key fob or causing damage by breaking into the car.
How can you prevent headlight hack theft?
Keeping your vehicle in a private place without easy-access is the first preventative step to take.
A device called the Viper DS4 called also offer some protection – as it stops thieves from being able to start a vehicle through the CAN injection.
Lastly, paying attention to any tampering with the body panels on your vehicle around its headlights is essential and, if noticed, would be cause for concern.
Contacting the police may be an appropriate option if you do notice it, as a thief could be waiting to use a CAN injection.