In a move to curb the rising tide of auto thefts, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, has announced a ban on the importation, sale, and use of consumer hacking devices.
These tools, including devices like flippers, have been exploited by criminals to steal vehicles by copying wireless signals from remote keyless entry systems. The decision was unveiled at a national auto theft summit, where Champagne emphasized the collective effort required to tackle this issue.
“At today’s auto theft summit, we sat down with provincial leaders, mayors, law enforcement, and industry to find solutions and steps we can take together to eradicate the scourge of auto theft in Canada,” Champagne stated on Thursday, pointing out the sophistication of tools used by criminals.
Dear François-Philippe,
We'd appreciate it if you could provide any evidence of Flipper Zero being involved in any criminal activities of this kind. We're not aware of any events like this and frankly speaking not sure what was the reason for this discussion to begin with.
— Flipper Zero (@flipper_zero) February 9, 2024
The ban targets devices such as the Flipper Zero, which has been identified as a potential tool for vehicle theft due to its ability to interact with various digital systems, including access control systems and RFID. However, the move has sparked debate within the tech community, raising concerns about the broader implications for digital tool access and development.
Critics like @dragosr, who mentioned the potential of using everyday items like Raspberry Pi for illegal purposes, questioned the feasibility and broader impact of such bans. “By the way, at my CanSecWest conference, some researchers recently showed how to use a Raspberry Pi to relay Bluetooth to unlock poorly secured Bluetooth car locks. Does this mean you are going to try to outlaw computers too?” @dragosr said on X, highlighting the complexity of regulating technology without stifling innovation.
The discussion has extended to the responsibility of car manufacturers in ensuring the security of their vehicles. @TophCoins argued, “Maybe the car companies should be held responsible for having awful security instead of punishing open-source devs.”
With news of car thefts being tracked down with Apple AirTags, but authorities unable to access stolen cars inside containers ahead of shipments to overseas markets, only now is the federal government waking up. Banning the Flipper Zero won’t stop all car thefts—auto makers need to beef up their vehicle security and consequences for car thieves needs to be increased.
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Seriously?
Gee, criminals using a tool not built for crime to commit a crime and these morons can’t only ever think to blame the tool. Their default reaction is, if criminals are committing crimes, we need to criminalize new things.
What’s next? Might as well criminalize computers, encryption, cars.
Turning regular people into criminals doesn’t solve crime. Speech. Assembly. Private property. Freedom of movement. Just a moronic politician away.
Turning people into criminals solves their problem: if we’re all criminals they can surveil us legally!
My god, what happened to this country
Turd-eau happened.
You forgot coat hangers and screwdrivers 😈
When you want to define moronic, just look at our government.
Please refrain from insulting morons. 🤣
Wouldn’t it make more sense to create a security standard and test cars against such a standard? Therefore keeping car manufacturers accountable for their cars’ security rather than playing whack-a-mole of hacking tools?
That would cause for collaboration between car manufacturer conglomerates requiring huge capital investments to change antiquated investments resulting in innovation. No car manufacturer wants any of that disruptive nonsense. If it’s working, don’t fix it they say.
When I first heard of the flipper, I thought the idea of it was so cool, and if I were a kid I’d love to be able to experiment and learn about wireless technologies with it.
I wonder how many missed innovation opportunities this ban will cause.
Sure, they could be used to hack cars or break iPhones… but screwdrivers can do that too…
When will government realize that criminals don’t follow laws. (Not the crazy USA way, I believe in gun licensing)
How about we set a standard for all locks (car and house) that must be met by all manufacturers. A standard that can constantly be updated automatically as it grows.
We could also look at shipments coming from china – alibaba/wish/aliexpress/temu all sell “key fob clones”.
All they do is ban. Ban ban ban.
ELECTION PLEASE
OMG….how did we not think of banning that device earlier? Of course this will stop car theft. Not dealing with corruption in ports, ministry of transportation, police, security companies, but FLIPPER.
Clown show….and the alcoholic beverage minister seems the perfect embodiment of the government circus.
Can’t wait to hear his screaming again in parliament in his broken English…. he’s always such an eloquent speaker.
Wouldn’t it be better to ban criminals? I dunno, like if you catch someone breaking a law they get removed from society for a while?
Holding automakers and widget manufacturers responsible for a criminal’s actions, while letting the criminals just keep doing what they’re doing seems a bit counterintuitive.
Crime and punishment. Hmmm. What a concept.
It’s typical leftist logic.
They push to decriminalize crime, since they see most crime as the fault of society and not of the individual criminals. See NYC, Vancouver and California for the results of such a mindset.
And since society is to blame for failing their utopia test, their solution is to try to change society. If they can just restrict the rights and freedoms of people, they will be able to create utopia. This isn’t just for crime. You see it in their approach to everything. Everything will be better if we just give up a little more.
Their tell is how much they see “freedom” as a dirty word now. “Freedumb”. Whenever you look at a left-right issue these days, it almost always is over a new restriction on individual liberties.
So true. Plus leftists only have two modes…BAN anything that makes them even slightly uncomfortable (speech, history, self determination, electronic widgets etc.) because they’re unwilling to face reality. Or make anything they deem to be for the “greater good” MANDATORY (electric vehicles, carbon…or any…tax, certain injectable substances etc.), the vast majority of which are fantasy/utopia based.