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+--- Thread: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? (/showthread.php?tid=1457)
Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Polygon2109 - 10-02-2026
Some of you may have read reports of how cars are some of the worst privacy infringing devices out there, with their always on connectivity and continuous data collection.
It seems there's an opportunity here on older cars that are still configurable with something like Orbit to purposely DISABLE the SIM/cell connectivity, and force it to fallback to wifi only.
Has anyone attempted this? I've seen threads where people complain about not being able to get back on cell connectivity, but nobody seems crazy enough to force disconnection.
My intention is to force it disconnected (and figure out how its done so its reversible), then set up a custom open-source 5G router to provide my own internet connection with firewall/filtering etc.
Thoughts/comments/ideas?
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Braxia - 10-03-2026
TBH yes that's an issue, but then again most of the times our brand is not targeted by criminals like the rest of german auto... AFAIK you cant route volvo traffic through WiFi except maps and apps updates.
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Polygon2109 - 10-03-2026
(10-03-2026, 06:11 AM)Braxia Wrote: TBH yes that's an issue, but then again most of the times our brand is not targeted by criminals like the rest of german auto... AFAIK you cant route volvo traffic through WiFi except maps and apps updates.
less worried about hacking or targeting, and more just interested in the privacy aspect. It's the least controlled 'IOT' device in my home, and happens to have GPS and continued connectivity to services I don't fully know.
You might be right that the Volvo/Polestar traffic routes differently than the application traffic. A quick test just connecting only wifi showed a bunch of connections to AWS and Hetzner, but the IP the car displayed in the Wifi panel and the IP that the car actually received from my network were different; I suspect there's some internal NAT networking happening between the TCAM and AAOS itself. The IP for the car seemed to belong to some "T-Systems Germany" company too, never heard of it.
Just preliminary exploration anyway. I don't expect we'll ever get full control/disconnect ability, but I'm definitely interested in how much more control we as owners can get back, and Orbit seems an essential tool to help that.
Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Sieluck - 10-04-2026
In the world where Google (apple) knows more about us then we do I'm not so bothered about car. Yes, more frightening is what can someone from outside do with my car if he hack the cars security when I'm driving. This is disturbing.
Wysłane z mojego CPH2581 przy użyciu Tapatalka
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Polygon2109 - 10-05-2026
You’re not wrong. At the same time, I don’t think it’s something to give up on just yet.
Outside hack isn’t that feasible really….at least it wouldn’t be direct to the car like movies portray. It’d be to the Volvo cloud, which might have some undocumented kill switch, or they’d just hack your account and control from the app as you.
Those scenarios involved security completely out of our control unless you can disconnect from their cloud at will…..which is kinda where I was hoping to start with this.
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - jos - 10-05-2026
It’s quite remarkable that Volvo doesn’t offer a second factor for account authentication and merely sends a code to the registered email address.
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Sodertalje - 10-05-2026
(10-05-2026, 07:29 AM)jos Wrote: It’s quite remarkable that Volvo doesn’t offer a second factor for account authentication and merely sends a code to the registered email address.
A code by email is a second factor.
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - Polygon2109 - 10-05-2026
This came out recently that's pretty relevant
https://automatictransmission.khoury.northeastern.edu/#methodology
What's interesting is it seems despite the China ownership, the C40 they tested seems to have some of the least outbound tracking company traffic compared to other manufacturers tested.
But even that limited amount I'd like to better understand and limit if possible.
Will play with enabling/disabling cellular/TCAM connectivity via Orbit when I get a chance. I don't want to break it permanently, but want to be sure I can turn it off and on at will before exploring further.
RE: Disable SIM/Celluar and force Wifi use only? - jos - 10-05-2026
The key issue is factor independence: if the email account is compromised, the attacker may gain both the login identifier and the second factor. TOTP is independent of the email account and therefore provides stronger protection against account takeover.