A parked car used to sit quietly in a driveway or along the curb with one job: stay exactly where it stood. Today, that quiet moment sometimes hides a high-tech heist unfolding in near silence. No smashed window. No roaring engine. No dramatic chase down the street. Instead, a vehicle glides away while the owner sleeps inside the house, unaware that invisible signals just unlocked the doors and started the engine.
Southern California now faces a sharp rise in a type of vehicle theft that feels more like a digital trick than a traditional crime. Criminals increasingly rely on relay attacks, a clever bit of electronic mischief that turns modern keyless entry systems into the perfect accomplice. The technology inside many new vehicles promises convenience and speed, yet that same convenience creates an opening that organized thieves happily exploit.
