outsmarted. i thought i had everything on lockdown. >> reporter: the same thing happened to steven in california. his car's computer system was hacked. but the crook didn't get away clean. the dash cam caught the suspect, pacing, holding some mystery box. >> whoa, did you see this guy start walking in front of the car. in the video you can hear the door locks. >> reporter: in 18 seconds the crook emptied out $3,000 worth of electronics. same device, different cities? >> same device, prem jis ex-cop and auto theft expert calls it the latest high-tech crime tool hitting new york to l.a. >> device in his left hand. >> reporter: he didn't know exactly what it is. >> the ease that this is working and the frequency that we're seeing it reported throughout the u.s., means it's only become a greater problem. >> reporter: your car is a rolling computer. what it takes to break in, not sledgehammers but hacking devices. >> in you can hack into nsa, you