Vehicle Diagnostic Protection (also known as SFD – Schutz Fahrzeug Diagnose) is an additional security layer that requires authorization between the vehicle and manufacturer.
It's been introduced by Volkswagen AG to help protect vehicle owners from fraud by providing information on who and when has made modifications to their vehicles. SFD restricts functions like adaptations, coding, and parametrizations.
This protection applies to the models manufactured from 2020 with the MQB Evo (e.g., VW Golf 8, Škoda Octavia IV, Seat Leon IV, Audi A3 8Y, Q4) and MEB (e.g., VW ID.3, ID.4, Škoda Enyaq) platforms.
The control units protected by SFD include Engine Electronics, Central Electrics, Instrument Cluster, Gateway Electrics, Multimedia Unit, and more.
About OBDeleven's SFD unlock
We've created an SFD auto-unlock feature to simplify the use of SFD protection, or, in other words – make SFD protection nearly invisible. If SFD auto-unlock is turned on and you try to change long coding, adaptation, or use One-Click Apps in a locked control unit, the OBDeleven VAG app will automatically request the SFD token from Volkswagen servers, unlock the control unit, and apply the changes you want.
Note: You need a PRO VAG or ULTIMATE VAG plan to use this feature.