A Kia Sportage is shown with three phones blocking it. Inside the phone screens, the car has disappeared, and its outline is shown by a dotted line.
Car thefts are booming thanks to a viral TikTok that exposed a vulnerability in certain Kia and Hyundai models.

How a viral video sparked the theft of hundreds of thousands of cars

Bria Jenkins was enjoying an evening at home last November, watching television with her kids and waiting for a Domino's delivery. But when she opened the door to grab the pizza from the delivery driver, she got a serious shock: There was broken glass strewn on the ground and her 2013 Kia Optima was gone — stolen from right in front of her house. 

"I started freaking out. I was like, 'Am I dreaming?'" she told me.