Hyundai and Kia announced last week that they have rolled out a software update in the United States to fix a security flaw that allows vehicles to be started using a simple USB cable and screwdriver.
The problem has fortunately never presented itself in Canada due to a regulation in force in the country since 2007, confirmed to us by Hyundai and Kia.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this theft technique popularized on the social network TikTok caused 14 accidents in which 8 people were killed in the United States. No less than 8.3 million vehicles are affected by this recall, according to data collected by the Associated Press. Note that the affected models are equipped with physical keys.
In Canada, Transport Canada requires that all vehicles produced since 1er September 2007 are equipped with an electronic immobilizer system that prevents this kind of theft. Hyundai and Kia also told us that all their vehicles currently sold in the country are equipped with a standard alarm system to make their theft more complex.