ORLANDO, Fla. – That social media challenge is finally getting a counter offensive from Hyundai.
The California-based car company launched a free anti-theft software upgrade this week to prevent the vehicles from starting during a method of theft popularized on TikTok and other social media channels.
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The announcement comes in response to increasing thefts targeting its vehicles without push-button ignitions and immobilizing anti-theft devices in the United States.
The technology will be launched as a service campaign for a total of almost 4 million vehicles beginning Tuesday. According to Hyundai, the upgrade starts with more than 1 million models, including year 2017-2020 Elantra, 2015-2019 Sonata and 2020-2021 Venue vehicles. The software upgrade is scheduled to be available for the remaining eligible affected vehicles by June 2023.
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The free upgrade will be performed by Hyundai dealers and will take less than one hour for installation. Following completion of the upgrade, each vehicle will be affixed with window decals to alert would-be thieves that the vehicle is equipped with enhanced anti-theft technology.
“Hyundai is committed to ensuring the quality and integrity of our products through continuous improvement and is pleased to provide affected customers with an additional theft deterrent through this software upgrade,” Randy Parker, CEO, Hyundai Motor America said. “We have prioritized the upgrade’s availability for owners and lessees of our highest selling vehicles and those most targeted by thieves in order for dealers to service them first.”
More information is available here. Customers can input their vehicle’s Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) to find out when it is eligible for the software upgrade.
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