Indian-origin financier hit by hi-tech car theft in UK

A UK-based Indian-origin investment firm underwriter is planning to switch to a more old fashioned car model after his hi-tech 4x4 was twice targeted by thieves who stole it after hacking its locking system.

Jas Hara said car-hackers were caught on CCTV unlocking his 72,000-pound Volvo XC90 from his driveway using a scanning device and then driving away in it. The 41-year-old said the same model was taken from his driveway in October last year using the same method.

"It's terrible. We feel devastated. It is so distressing for it to happen not once but twice," he told the 'Evening Standard' newspaper.

"These thieves are using a new technology more powerful than before. The only consolation is that eventually karma will come around to them," he said, adding that he and his wife had taken extra precautions the second time but it failed to deter the thieves.

"Now I think we will stick with a bog-standard (old fashioned) car, and I would rather use a normal key from now on," he said.

In the latest incident, Hara noticed the car was missing when he woke up last Friday for his morning trip to the local gurudwara.

Car-hacking, or "relay attack", is becoming a common form of vehicle theft in the UK, with keyless entry cited as the "main driver" in the rise in offences.

The crime involves thieves using a "relay box" to pick up a signal from a real key. There have been calls to make it illegal to sell or own the boxes.

Advice to car owners includes storing keys in a metal-lined container, keeping them well away from the front of the house, and turning off their radio signal.

The Metropolitan Police said it was investigating Hara's case but nobody had been arrested for either theft so far.