Car owners with keyless entry systems are vulnerable to having their vehicles broken into using devices that Australian state policing agencies say are being used by criminals here.
Victoria Police confirmed to Fairfax Media that it was aware of instances where devices have been used to illegally enter locked cars in Victoria, which has led to valuables being stolen.
"While these activities are not occurring on a widespread scale in Victoria, police will continue to monitor the issue," a spokeswoman said.
NSW Police would not confirm instances but said criminals were becoming "increasingly tech-savvy" with car break-ins.
"We urge vehicle owners to take every possible precaution to secure and protect their property," a NSW Police spokeswoman said.
It comes after New York Times writer Nick Bilton wrote a story detailing a break-in of his car using a device security experts suggest amplified the signal of his vehicle's keyless entry system so that it thought the keys on his kitchen bench were within range of his car.
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It was recommended to Mr Bilton by security experts that the best way to protect the goods inside his car from being stolen was to put his keys in the freezer, which acts as a Faraday cage to prevent them calling home to the car when a power amplifier device is in use.
But this wouldn't be of much use if you were shopping at a supermarket and thieves used a device while you were inside.
Because of this, Victoria Police instead suggested that people didn't leave valuables inside their cars.
"The community can avoid becoming a target of theft by removing valuables from their car," a police spokeswoman said.
"Items such as mobile phones, GPS units, cash and wallets attract unwanted attention from thieves."
While the power amplifier devices used to break in to cars weren't typically illegal themselves, it was illegal to use them to break into someone's car, the Victoria Police spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, Western Australia Police and South Australia Police said they had not seen the devices in use.
"WA Police are aware of these devices, however as far as we are aware, we haven't seen them in use in WA," A WA Police spokesman said.
South Australia Police said: "This type of device [used to commit offences] is not something SA Police are specifically aware of at this time."
