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We are the face of change, the propagators of progress. If you want a Buck Rogers style future with hovercars and jet packs and robotic maids, then go out and create it! There are no set limits; the only limit is how far your vision goes.

One day, we will all of us be gone, but the changes we make to the world will live on. Bring up the next generation of hackers to the best of your ability, and never forget the sense of wonder that got you started down this road. I will forever be grateful to have had a family that let me take apart things with a hammer and let me make my own mistakes. Someday, I will do the same for my own family.

Keep your horizons broad and your eyes open, and your life will be richer for it. We are far outnumbered by people happy to follow in the footsteps of giants, hopping from shoeprint to shoeprint. Blaze your own trail and enjoy the trail while it lasts, because nothing is forever. Hack on.

KC is an IT consultant by day. He spends his time outside of work pursuing purely analog hobbies, having recently graduated from smashing things to building them.

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How to Protect Your Car from Radio Jammers

by Beyond | 790 words

This past September, an interesting bypass of car locks was believed to have occurred in Surrey, England. Police in Surrey theorized that a gang of car thieves were, and possibly still are, utilizing radio jammers to help gain entry into vehicles. According to a local resident, who perhaps was nearly a victim, he was unable to lock his car with his remote in the presence of an individual dressed in unseasonably warm clothes. When this individual was no longer around, the car and remote cooperated as if nothing out of the ordinary had ever happened. Police believed that the individual was dressed in unseasonably warm clothes to conceal a radio jammer. When an intended target tried to lock his/her car, the jammer, already turned on, would prevent communication between the remote and the car and thus prevent the car from being locked remotely. The car owner would unknowingly walk off leaving the car unlocked, allowing the thieves uninhibited entry. Ingenious, to say the least. Theoretically there's nothing preventing this from happening, but realistically? I'd like to see a bit more proof than just one testimonial before I'm convinced. Nevertheless, it's possible, and you, I, and everyone else could be a victim. Let's look at this vulnerability a bit more in depth and discuss a few ways that we can all better protect ourselves and our property.

First, let's do an experiment. You're going to need a car remote and Internet access. Look on the back of the car remote and find a number listed to the right of the FCC ID. Now, point your browser to the FCC's ID Search database which is found at: http://www.fcc.gov/oet/ea/fccid/ . This database contains public information related to a searchable FCC ID. Next, we're going to input the FCC ID into the form found on the previously linked page. In my example, I'm going to use my Ford Ranger remote. Its FCC ID is CWTWB1U345. Don't worry; it's not unique or linked to my VIN. I share it with hundreds of thousands of other people. When I hit submit, I get some basic information about my device such as its manufacturer, Alps Electric Co., Ltd., and their address. I also can get some reference material, such as photos of the device's internals or test reports, by clicking "Detail" under "Display Exhibits." That's all well and neat, but what we're looking for is our device's operating frequency. You can find that by looking at the last two columns from our initial search return: Lower Frequency in MHz and Upper Frequency in MHz. In our case, along with just about every vehicle on the road, its 315 MHz. Toyota, Lexus, Mercedes, Chevrolet, etc. all use remotes manufactured by separate companies, such as Alps, that utilize the same 315 MHz as required by the FCC in the United States. Now, I'm sure you're thinking, "But Surrey is in England, well beyond the jurisdiction of the FCC!" Right, but when your biggest customer, the United