South Korean authorities have identified 80 Tesla drivers who allegedly forced Full Self-Driving (FSD) onto cars that were never cleared for it, Electrek reports. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency says it confiscated 21 of the devices used to switch the feature on. The unlock modules reportedly connect to the car’s CAN bus (the internal network that links its electronic control units) and get around the regional software lock that keeps FSD disabled. That works because Tesla builds the same computer into every car, whether or not the feature is approved locally.

Some suspects bought ready-made units from Europe and China, and one reportedly plugged a European-made module into his own Tesla. Others skipped the shopping. One suspect, an IT worker, built his device using information he found on GitHub, which suggests the barrier to entry for this kind of modification is lower than it sounds. The group also traded tips online, including how to stop the car from keeping any record that FSD had been activated. Concealing the activation history is likely an attempt to avoid detection by Tesla, which has been looking for these devices itself.

Then there is the legal risk, where prosecutors are using the Motor Vehicle Management Act, which bans unauthorized software changes that could affect vehicle safety. In Korea, the maximum penalty is two years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million won, or roughly $15,000, a steep price for a driver-assistance feature that many of these owners had already paid for.

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