Honda Cars : Burglar tries to break in Judge Lillian Sing's car | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

This is just pathetic.... I wish the Judicial system would grow some teeth....

Judge Lillian Sing got a taste of judicial medicine the other day when a convicted car burglar she was trying to help walked out of her San Francisco courtroom and, within minutes, was busted for allegedly breaking into her car.
Phillip Bernard was in Community Court on Tuesday for a check of his progress while on probation for an auto burglary conviction.
Bernard, who is homeless, had missed an earlier appearance and had failed to follow his probation requirements. "I wasn't too happy with him," Sing said.
But Community Court is set up to get people help, not send them to jail for minor infractions. So Sing let him off with a stern admonishment.
"I told him he had better get into a harm reduction program and get going with a job search," Sing said.
No sooner did Sing's gavel go down, however, than Bernard exited the Polk Street courtroom, went around to the alley in back, pulled out a weighted sock and smashed the rear passenger window of a car, police said.
As fate would have it, a couple of beat cops were passing by. They nabbed Bernard, ran the car's plate and bingo - up popped the judge's name.
"He did it right under my nose," Sing said.
Bernard, 32, is now back behind bars, facing another auto burglary charge.
His next court date is Tuesday, this time in Superior Court.
As for this validating those who say Community Court is just a revolving door for petty criminals like Bernard?
"He's just one of 1,600 we deal with," Sing said. "Most of them do really well."
Maybe - but this is the one who is going to be remembered.

Source (via www.carscoop.blogspot.com);

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/06/10/BADI1OVAHM.DTL&tsp=1

Honda Cars : Canada's Top 10 List of Most Stolen Cars for 2011 | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Huh?!?!?According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, the 2009 Toyota Venza 4-door was the most popular car in Canada to be stolen by car thieves.

Yesterday, the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) released its annual list of the top 10 vehicles stolen in Canada. The 2009 Toyota Venza 4-door can now shout "we're number one" after replacing the 2000 Honda Civic SiR that took top honours in 2010. That model of Honda dropped down to third place this year.

According to Statistics Canada, vehicle thefts, along with other property crimes, are dropping. In 2010, 15,300 fewer vehicles were stolen throughout the country than were taken during the previous year. But the IBC notes that while these thefts have dropped, so has the recovery rate. This suggests a lot of thefts are carried out by organized crime as opposed to young people out to have a little fun.

Rick Dubin, Vice-President, Investigative Services, Insurance Bureau of Canada, said,
We're doing a good job of stopping stolen vehicles at the ports. Our data indicates that we are not seeing many of these vehicles there. We have to conclude that stolen vehicles are being re-sold locally. But because these stolen vehicles are in these local markets, buyers need to be careful.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada advises the public to only purchase vehicles from reputable dealers and to trace the history of the car. Similarly, when repairs are needed, consumers should only deal with legitimate auto repair shops. There is a lucrative market for parts taken from high end cars, crossovers, and trucks.

The IBC advises if anyone is looking for a reputable repair or auto body shop, they can contact an insurance company or the IBC.

The IBC's list of most frequently stolen vehicles is as follows:
1. 2009 Toyota Venza 4-door
2. 1999 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
3. 2000 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
4. 2006 Ford F350 Pickup Truck 4WD
5. 2002 Cadillac Escalade EXT 4-door
6. 2006 Chevrolet TrailBlazer SS 4-door 4WD
7. 2007 Ford F350 Pickup Truck 4 WD
8. 2001 Pontiac Aztek 4-door AWD
9. 1998 Accura Integra 2-door
10. 1999 Acura Integra 2-door

Source;
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/316130#ixzz1gcKDG9BV

Honda Cars : CarShark Software Lets You Hack Into, Control And Kill Any Car | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Whoa! Yikes!
CarShark's a computer program that'll let someone hack into a car's onboard computer system to kill the brakes, disable the engine, blast music and otherwise wreak electronic havoc. It's both clever and absolutely frightening. Here's how it works.

A team of researchers led by professors at the University of Washington and USCD hacked the Controller Area Network (CAN) system installed on all new cars built in the United States to show how potentially vulnerable the system is. The CAN is supposed to allow onboard vehicle systems to communicate so problems are easier to diagnose, but the hands of these hackers it's the open door to disabling a vehicle.

The researchers connected to the car via a simple OBD-II computer port and using the CarShark program, identified the packets of information being trafficked across the CAN. For some hacks they used a process called "fuzzing" and sent random bits of code to disrupt them. This caused horns to blow, trunks to pop and even the brakes to stop functioning. There's supposed to be a failsafe override for the brakes, but jamming the ABS solenoids could lock up the brakes so they're not usable.

The most frightening attack is called "self-destruct" and essentially counts down from 60 seconds on the dash clock and then shuts off the engine and locks the door.

Don't freak out too much. It's not a simple task for someone without a degree in computer science to access the CAN and rewrite the code for a modern car, but that it's possible at all is something scientists think automakers need to consider when protecting these systems.
The full research report can be found here.

Source;
http://jalopnik.com/5539181/carshark-software-lets-you-hack-into-control-and-kill-any-car