Canada decided to abandon the idea of a complete ban on the Flipper Zero multitool. Instead, the target should be the illegal actors who use these devices to steal cars, i.e. criminals, PCMag reports.
On Wednesday, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) clarified its position on this issue. The goal is to “prohibit the illegal use of wireless devices used in car theft.”
“The intent is to move forward with measures to restrict the use of such devices to legitimate actors only, and therefore the importation, possession, sale, and use by illegitimate actors will not be permitted,” the department said in an email.
The Department is already working with Canadian companies, online retailers and the automotive industry to address this issue and will announce specific plans in the near future.
About a month ago, Canadian Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne publicly announced the ban on Flipper Zero to combat car theft.
Flipper Devices launched a petition calling on the country to lift the ban.
“Such proposals are usually made by those who do not really understand how security works and will do nothing to solve the car theft problem,” Flipper Devices CEO Pavlo Zhovner wrote.
It remains unclear how the authorities will try to stop the flow of Flipper Zero devices to illegitimate entities without affecting retail sales. Canada may be considering licensing such devices.
Flipper Devices says it has found no evidence that Flipper Zero has ever been used to actually steal a car.
However, it’s easy to find videos showing that Flipper Zero can indeed copy a wireless signal from a key fob. But the company claims that the rolling codes on modern key fobs can prevent the copied wireless signal from opening the car door.
Pavlo Zhovner, the developer of the device and director of Flipper Devices, is a Ukrainian by birth who lived in Russia for a long time. Currently, Zhovner writes on his social media that he is in the UK.
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