Digital theft protection has always been a feature that Bosch has used to set its Smart System drive system apart from the competition. Now, the manufacturer is taking this a step further. With an update of the Bosch eBike Flow app to version 1.31, you can give your ebike a kind of digital stamp that identifies it as stolen. Anyone who wants to connect to the ebike from that moment on will receive this warning message.
Bosch eBike Lock. Bosch eBike Alarm. The Bosch ConnectModule GPS tracker. And most recently, Bosch Battery Lock. Hardly any other ebike system offers a comparable number of digital solutions designed to prevent your ebike from being stolen. Or to provide you with significant support in finding it again should the worst happen. Or to help you render the ebike battery unusable for thieves if the component is stolen individually.
Stolen ebikes featuring Bosch Smart System soon to be worthless to thieves?
The new function in the eBike Flow app is called āMark eBike as stolenā. It takes the principle of Battery Lock and extends it to the entire e-drive. After upgrading to firmware version 1.31, you can use the app to report that your ebike has been stolen. If the bike later ends up with a new owner through criminal means, they will see a red warning light pop up in the app. From that moment on, no other person can connect to this ebike. Additionally, a text will appear, alerting them to the theft and providing various recommendations for action. The same applies if the ebike turns up at a specialist repair shop, second-hand dealers such as Upway or Rebike, or investigating authorities such as the police.
Unlike the Battery Lock function, which locks the battery and makes it impossible to charge, marking the ebike as stolen does not completely disable the ebike system. Technically speaking, it can still be used. However, the lack of connection to the app prevents actions such as installing over-the-air updates and customising riding modes. Taken together, these measures should deter all legal parties from riding the ebike and increase your chances of actually getting a stolen ebike back.
New function utilises digital signature for all components
The basis for the new feature in the app is the fact that Bosch digitally assigns each individual component within the Smart System to a single ebike system. Components such as the motor, battery and display are thus clearly linked to the user profile for your ebike. If you mark your ebike as stolen, this information is sent to a central location at Bosch, from which both the eBike Flow app and the Diagnostic Tool in workshops, as well as Bosch Support, obtain their data. It is therefore stored and accessible throughout the entire digital ecosystem of Bosch eBike Systems.
In addition to the entire ebike, you can also use the new function to mark only the battery as stolen. Thieves are particularly fond of removable Intube batteries, frame batteries, and rear rack batteries. In the event of theft, you can at least ensure that thieves cannot profit from their crime.
In both cases ā a stolen ebike and a stolen battery ā the digital marking can only be removed from the registered user profile.
No additional costs for āmark eBike as stolenā
Bosch presented the innovation at the current Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. It is to be implemented with update 1.31 of the eBike Flow app. The announcement from Bosch states that the download will be available at the end of January. The exact date appears to be still open. What is certain, however, is that the āmark eBike as stolenā function will be offered free of charge and, unlike Battery Lock and eBike Alarm, does not require a Flow+ subscription.
Pictures: Bosch eBike Systems