Mar 20, 2023
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Does everyone use a faraday pouch for their keys? I read somewhere that the key doesn't emit signals when not in motion so seems pretty secure to use them without but interested in hearing your thoughts. Thanks.

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I use a faraday pouch. From my experience in auto crime it seems that the car thief is always one step ahead. Technology these days means keyless car theft is huge and even if the key isn't supposed to transmit signals when not in motion, a £10 faraday pouch is an added piece of security
 
I agree entirely with ScoobyD00. I bought these from Amazon: link. Good value for £8 for a pair. There's plenty of choice and for the cost why wouldn't you for that extra piece of mind.
 
The keys used by VAG on the Formentor go into 'sleep' mode after a short period of being left stationary, said to be a couple of minutes. This means they cannot be interrogated using the 'man in the middle' hack, but as @oldgitdave says, for extra piece of mind...
 
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There are options to either temporarily or permanently disable the keyless entry function - pages 87 and 88 in the 2022 edition of the Owner’s manual (maybe different page numbers in earlier editions of the manual) - screenshots below;

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My 2020 VW doesn’t have the option to permanently disable keyless entry, but it does have the option to temporarily disable it which I always do. It’s easy to do but needs to be done each time the car’s locked, but that’s no real hardship to do IMHO. I keep my key fobs in a metal tin when they’re in the house to stop any would-be opportunists trying to intercept the key fob signal.

For anyone using a Faraday pouch, bear in mind that the metallic lining in these pouches can become damaged over time. Therefore it’s worth checking periodically that the pouch is still stopping the key fob signal being transmitted; with the key fob in the Faraday pouch, take it to your car and try and undo the locked door while the key fob is still in the pouch. If the door unlocks, then the pouch lining is damaged and no longer stopping the signal so it’s time to replace the Faraday pouch with a new one.
 
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I test my Faraday pouches regularly and then at home my keys live in a tin far from the driveway - triple protection ??
 
I've heard of some technology that doesn't even need to scan keys, as you touch the door to try and unlock it , the device will calculate the unlock code and open and start the vehicle.
All you can do is try your best.
Haven't heard the above used on cupra but other manufacturers have had this issue
 
From reading the above, it sounds like disabling kessy is the way I'm going to go. If I'm going to have to take the keys out of a pouch, I may as well just not have a pouch and use the physical buttons. Is this safe?

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From reading the above, it sounds like disabling kessy is the way I'm going to go. If I'm going to have to take the keys out of a pouch, I may as well just not have a pouch and use the physical buttons. Is this safe?

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Well before you do I'll just say that I only use the pouch when the key is inside. When I go out the key is in my pocket and never moves from there until I get home or wherever I'm visiting.
 
Well before you do I'll just say that I only use the pouch when the key is inside. When I go out the key is in my pocket and never moves from there until I get home or wherever I'm visiting.
Sorry I didn't follow. Do you mean you only use the pouch when you are home and when you go out you leave the pouch at home?

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Sorry I didn't follow. Do you mean you only use the pouch when you are home and when you go out you leave the pouch at home?

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Generally yes. I use the pouch when the car is parked on the drive. I keep a pouch in the car that I rarely use tbh. But if I'm going out to, let's say, a pub for a meal then I'll put the key in the pouch whilst I'm in there as the car may be parked quite close by.