Car Thieves Are Hacking Into Headlights— Here’s What You Need to Know

Auto thefts rose steadily between 2019 and 2024, according to a recent FBI study. While the old Hollywood-style of hot wiring isn’t too practical with many of today’s modern car features, some tech-savvy car thieves have turned those new, more complex electronic systems to their advantage by breaking in through the wiring in the headlights.

“Unfortunately, this is becoming more common,” says Kris Barber, an attorney who specializes in vehicle theft and personal property damage. “Modern cars are essentially networked computers on wheels, loaded with hundreds of microchips that communicate with one another. If a thief can tap into even a single point in that network, like the headlight wiring where it’s the easiest to access, they can potentially access the entire system.”

Here’s what to know about car thieves hacking into headlights and how to safeguard your vehicle.

How Are Car Thieves Stealing Cars Through Headlights?

Some modern car thieves can steal vehicles by fooling their electronic sensors, using a homemade device called a CAN injector. CANs injectors are sometimes assembled from cheap electronic components, stuffed into the shell of an innocent-looking bluetooth speaker.

Once thieves access the wires powering the headlights, they can connect the CAN injector into the wiring harness. From there, they are in communication with the car’s CAN system, which is the network many modern car modules use to communicate with one another.

“There’s nothing inherently special about headlight wires, except that they’re often easy to reach,” says Barber. “That makes them the no-brainers for hackers.”

Once inside they CAN system, thieves can send a signals that enable them to steal the car. “If you can get to that connector or wiring, you can send signals to turn off the anti-theft system, unlock doors, start the engine, basically anything,” says Chris “Moose” Pyle, an automotive expert with JustAnswer.

However, this will not work on all vehicles, especially ones 2010 and older, says Pyle. It also won’t work on newer cars that don’t have CAN wiring in their headlamps, like some smart headlights that use a small electronic board instead. Also, some headlights are difficult to access or remove, or have too tight of a space in them for a thief to insert the CAN injector.

Is There Anything That Can Be Done to Prevent This?

The ultimate solution to this new brand of car theft is better vehicle network encryption by automakers. This is still in the works, and won’t be of any help to car owners just yet. One option is to purchase an anti-theft device, but some of these work better than others.

Luckily, there’s one simple measure you can take that will stop thieves dead in their tracks. It’s a bit of a pain to implement, but well worth it if you’re concerned about your car disappearing. Every time I park my car somewhere sketchy, I pop the hood, lock the doors and pocket the keys. I then use a 10-millimeter wrench to disconnect the cable from the negative terminal of my battery. Then I close the hood and walk away. A car thief won’t get far in a vehicle with a disconnected battery. In fact, they’ll get nowhere. A more elegant version of this same idea is to install a hidden kill switch somewhere in your vehicle so you can disconnect the battery from the starter motor with a flick of your finger. Are you familiar with HID headlights?

FAQ

How can I protect my car from theft?

Barber emphasizes to:

• Park in well-lit, high-traffic areas.
• Use a steering wheel lock.
• Use an immobilizer, which can block CAN injectors via a hidden PIN code system.
• Install a cloud-based dash cam with an interior-facing hidden camera, audio and GPS tracking.
• Check with your auto manufacturer for software updates that prevent this hack.
• Maintain adequate auto theft insurance.

“You can also go old-school,” says Barber. “Consider older vehicles with physical ignition keys. Fewer electronics often mean fewer vulnerabilities.”

What should I look for when buying a used car to avoid purchasing a stolen vehicle?

Make sure the VIN (Vehicle iIdentification Number) matches on all parts of the vehicle that display it, as well as on the vehicle’s documents. It’s also a good idea to use a VIN lookup tool to check for red flags like accidents, recalls or theft, says Barber.

“A well-documented service record usually means the vehicle was legitimately owned and well cared for,” says Barber. “Also ask how many owners the car has had. Too many, too fast, can be a sign something’s off.”

If you’re purchasing a car from a car lot, there’s little chance it’s stolen, as they have to check the vehicle’s history. Be more wary, though, when purchasing a car through a private party. “If the seller’s name matches the title, you are 99% good to go,” says Pyle. “If something seems off, you can call the local police station to have the VIN number checked.”

About the Experts

• Kris Barber is lead attorney at The Barber Law Firm in Dallas, who regularly deals with the legal and insurance ramifications of vehicle theft and property damage.
• Chris “Moose” Pyle is a master-certified technician with 20-plus years of automotive experience. He has also worked as an expert for JustAnswer since 2006, where he answers hundreds of car maintenance and repair questions a day.

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