Gilles Deacur
Cops: Man copies key on test drive, steals truck
It's about a person who took a new vehicle for a test drive and copied the key before returning the car to the dealership. Later on he went back with his key copy and stole the car.
Most vehicles these days have transponders that are designed to prevent automotive theft. A transponder is a tiny device embedded within the head of the key that contains a unique code. There are billions of possible combinations. When the vehicle ignition is turned on, an antenna requests the code from the key. The key responds with the code. If the code matches the code value stored in the vehicle's computer it allows the vehicle to start. If not, it shuts down critical electrical components that allow the vehicle to start.
Vehicle theft has dropped drastically since the inception of transponders. But it just won't prevent a theft where the key is used.
If the vehicle was equipped with a transponder, it may have cost anywhere from $25 to $200 (just a ballpark -some are more, some less) for the spare key to be made and programmed into the vehicle.
Be careful who you lend your keys to. Even if you get them back you can't be certain they weren't copied.
