Setting off car alarms intentionally?

[blackbear]

So I was playing splinter cell: conviction the other day and you have the ability to intentionally set off car alarms to distract the enemies or even confuse them. Has anyone tried doing this to distract guards, civilians, etc?

Also, in the first Bourne movie, he sets off a bunch of car alarms simultaneously, again to confuse and distract. Any techniques for doing this electronically? I don't know much about how car alarms work so I honestly don't have a thought of how to do it.

Anyway, I just thought it was a cool idea to discuss. Any thoughts?

[Xanatos]

I can only see this being done in an emergency situation when you have people looking for you, and even then the circumstances are quite strict. When you set off the car alarm you'll just be drawing attention to your location, so I wouldn't recommend it.

Getting inspiration from videogames & movies is all well and good - heck, stealth games were a huge catalyst for me - but please use your common sense above all else.

[blackbear]

I live in an urban setting so car alarms going off is fairly common, I was thinking that if you were somehow able to remotely set off a car alarm it would draw everyone's eyes towards it allowing you to get past a fairly populated area without being seen. I guess it goes without saying that in a rural setting or even in a hostile AO you wouldn't want to do this as it would announce that something shady was going on.

[QuantumFisher]

As you can see by looking at the above picture, there is many different sensors on a modern automobile that make up the alarm system. The alarm could be activated by bumping the glass, operating the door handle etc. Unless you had some kind of gun the could emit low frequency waves, then you are out of luck for a remote triggering of the system.

Also, there is a possibility that you won't be able to trigger the alarm the first time, so it is better to leave a tactic like this for emergency's only. It really is a last minute thing.

[TheBurnedMan]

pellet gun.
or explosives, a loud bang will set off car alarms
but I think that would be distraction enough in itself.

[Xanatos]

or explosives, a loud bang will set off car alarms

Get out.

[TheBurnedMan]

I agree that it is a terrible idea but I also think it could work, more of an amusing thought than an actual suggestion to clarify.

[QuantumFisher]

pellet gun.
or explosives, a loud bang will set off car alarms
but I think that would be distraction enough in itself.

The pellet gun would damage the window, and that is something you don't want to do, and the same thing goes for explosives. Both items would get you reamed out if you you got caught using them, plus they they are not stealth like and attract attention, which is the opposite goal of the night operative.

Ultimately, as a night operative, you want to get in and get out undetected and without damaging anything as you are already breaking the law during your general night op activities. Start blowing up cars and damaging them and you're completely fucked if you do ever get caught.

[TheBurnedMan]

I agree it is not a very good idea, and blowing up cars is not what I meant, I was just trying to come up with ways to set them off remotely and was reminded of a time when a sonic boom set of literally every car alarm in the city

[QuantumFisher]

I agree it is not a very good idea, and blowing up cars is not what I meant, I was just trying to come up with ways to set them off remotely and was reminded of a time when a sonic boom set of literally every car alarm in the city

If you really had to do it, you could build an explosive device with a remote detonator eg. a pre-paid phone. Either that or snipe the window with an air rifle. You have to remember that air rifles aren't soundless and do make a noise when fired which could give away your position.

I would go with the remote detonated explosive device. Just build it a small size and design it to tape to the window and shock the glass hard enough for it to set off the alarm, that way you'll be making it as efficient as possible without causing unnecessary damage.

I assume that the windows of most cars need quite a bit of shock to set off the alarm, so you would need something that has enough power. I would experiment with blasting caps and then go on from there, testing your shit until you figured out the how much force is needed to set the alarm off.

However, using a shock wave to set off an alarm may not work on all cars as the older alarms use pressure sensors (measuring interior air pressure) and mic's programmed to detect the pitch and volume of breaking glass. The newer cars would be easier as alot of them use motion and tilt sensors as well as sensitive shock sensors.

The most sure-fire way would be to develop a small but powerful blasting cap that would shatter the window. Because, ultimately, unless the window is being broken, there is a chance it may not work. Granted the explosion would attract attention, but it is no way as suspicious as a car alarm going off, which would ultimately attract more attention.


Electronically:

Some vehicles are equipped with remote systems that can be accessed via wifi like Webtech Plus, a system that allows dealers to disable non-paying customers vehicles. If you had a smart phone, you could probably hack the system as it has been done before.

Aside from that, I don't think it's possible electronically.

[Xanatos]

Aww shit, not another bawmb thread.

[QuantumFisher]

Aww shit, not another bawmb thread.

You know you like it.

[Coryne]

Hey, that's cheating You are supposed to be unseen without stuff like that. Otherwise you could as well blow up power lines and op during total blackout of the city.

[TheBurnedMan]

ok fine, I guess this is out of the question for those pesky lights too, seriously though, the electronic method that was mentioned earlier in the thread seems like a viable option, and if you could get it to work the possibilities are mouthwatering, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqe6S6m73Zw

[TheBurnedMan]

although in the video they are physically connected to the cars systems it has been shown previously that these systems can be accessed remotely in a variety of ways.

[Marzka]

Do car alarms go off if you try to open the door? My parents' cars don't but I just want to make sure.

[Poltergeist]

Well, you could maybe strategically place you car in a specific location if possible without looking out of place, then if needed, you could use your keychain thing to set it off if your key chain car locker unlocked does that, I have no clue what the thingy is but I think you get the idea.

[Xanatos]

I wouldn't use your own car for that sort of thing, since your car is usually the place you're trying to get to unnoticed and drawing attention there will only hinder that. Plus, if someone recognises your car or license plate, it'll just highlight the fact that you were there.

[Woden]

Would much rather use a slingshot with a bit of porcelain and smash a window for distraction. Would avoid doing this though and only if it was an emergency situation where I needed a distraction to escape. Bear in mind that there aren't always windows in sight.

It would be ideal to have something that can be used in every environment.

I suppose car alarms could be used, however only in a specific scenario where stealth is no longer an option. Actually I could imagine that being used well in certain urban environments that are highly populated. But how to set off an alarm without being near the car and leaving any damage?