New York City goes after Hyundai, Kia after security flaw leads to wave of social media fueled theft

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN 27 minutes ago

New York City has filed a lawsuit against Hyundai and Kia, joining a host of other cities beset by a social media fueled wave of car thefts due to a flaw that made some car models highly susceptible to theft.

Viral how-to videos on TikTok and other sites show how to start the cars using only USB cables and a screwdriver. The reason is that some models sold by Hyundai and Kia in the U.S. came without engine immobilizers, a standard feature on most cars since the 1990s that prevent the engine from starting unless the key is present.

The lawsuit, which was filed with the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York late Tuesday, alleges that Hyundai Motor America and Kia America Inc. failed to keep up with other automakers by not adopting immobilizer technology that ensured cars could not be started without their keys.

“Hyundai’s and Kia’s business decisions to reduce costs, and thereby boost profits, by foregoing common anti-theft technology have resulted in an epidemic of thefts,” the lawsuit states.




Read more: https://apnews.com/article/hyundai-kia-new-york-tiktok-60bcd71fa1fc7f32ba91ed1b57c7e179

[Ocelot II]

1. Lawsuits everywhere. Kias (especially) are stolen regularly

and used in carjackings, and many lawsuits are being filed. https://www.fox9.com/news/kia-hyundai-thefts-still-a-problem-in-minneapolis

[leftieNanner]

2. Huge problem with this in the Seattle area

Kias and Hyundais.

[LisaM]

3. Seems as if TikTok is at fault, too.

Why aren't they taking these videos down? (I'd say the same about the other social media outlets that so this, but I don't know who they are).

I am not defending companies who have vehicles that are easy to steal when they shouldn't be (we had a 1994 Honda that was stolen twice and was apparently very easy to steal) but a platform shouldn't have a "how to" for committing crimes.

[deurbano]

4. We bought our daughter a Hyundai Kona for her 18th birthday at the end of July, 2020, when she was

supposed to be headed to UC Irvine for her freshman year, but had to do that year remotely from San Francisco (because of Covid). She had already missed all the high school senior activities--like final dance recitals (after years of dance), senior prom, final high school play, class trip, graduation, etc..-- and since she would be saving money on housing that first year, and a car would be useful for going back and forth from SF to Irvine... and to get to her field study in another Orange County city (since relying on public transportation is a bit more challenging than in the Bay Area)--we decided to surprise her with a slightly used Kona because it was (relatively) affordable for all the safety features. I knew it couldn't make up for losing all the other stuff, but she had handled it all with such grace (the much maligned Gen Z demonstrated so much resilience as the pandemic was unfolding!), and it made me happy to see her so thrilled. Now she is a third year senior, and headed for USC for grad school in the fall, so this car will still be very useful, especially since she will have close friends (including her boyfriend!) still at UCI.


The Kona has really been a GREAT car for my daughter (until this security flaw!), and I highly recommend it. Fortunately, Hyundai sent her information on how to get it fixed with an update at a dealership, and she did that a few weeks ago.

[ZenDem]

5. I love my Soul, but...

...super freaked out about this. I live in KCMO and there are constant thefts around my area. My car is parked in my driveway, well lit, but just out there waiting. They arrested 6 kids this week in a Kia/Hyundai theft ring...kids.

NO notice from Kia. Tried calling and they don't have any answers for me other than to tell me that I can pick up a steering lock at the local cop shop. But...it isn't actually local. Not to mention that absolute inconvenience of a steering lock.

Ugh. Hate thieves.

[obamanut2012]

7. Steering locks are available on Amazon, at Advanc Auto, Ace, etc.

[slightlv]

6. I mentioned the other night at a get together

with friends that Kia was one of the cars that actually "fit" me comfortably. I'm a small person, and I felt so good when I drove a temp Kia, that I actually considered buying one. Ended up buying a Chevy Cavalier instead. One friend told me about the thefts of these cars; it was the first I'd heard of it! Then he told me the insurance companies had actually stopped insuring them because the thefts had gotten so bad. Made sense, tho I never would have thought of that, had I been shopping for one!

[WalkerinSC]

8. Maybe not a popular opinion

Car prices are ridiculous. Anti theft is a nice option but for many, every penny counts in the final price for basic transportation. Suing a company because their car gets stolen because it's a base model is like suing a store for leaving merchandise unsecured.

[FakeNoose]

9. It's outrageous that no across-the-board recall has been announced to fix this problem

I'm wondering why the auto insurance companies aren't SCREAMING about this weakness.

Why is it left up to the City of New York to file these lawsuits?

[cstanleytech]

10. We have a Kia Soul and our insurance just spiked up $60 more a month and

all Kia is offering us is $300 towards a cheap ass wheel lock which can be cut easy.
That's why we probably will not be buying anything else from them ever again.