Localization and passive entry/passive start systems and methods for vehicles

A system comprising:

• a communication gateway in a vehicle configured to establish a Bluetooth low energy (BLE) communication connection with a portable device;
• a plurality of sensors in communication with the communication gateway, each configured to receive connection information about the BLE communication connection from the communication gateway, to eavesdrop on the BLE communication connection based on the connection information, and to measure signal information about at least one communication signal corresponding to at least one communication packet sent from the portable device to the communication gateway;
• a security filtering module configured to determine whether the at least one communication packet was received from an unauthorized device;
• a localization module configured to receive the signal information from each of the plurality of sensors, in response to the security filtering module determining that the at least one communication packet was not received from an unauthorized device, and to determine a location of the portable device based on the signal information from the plurality of sensors;
• and
• a passive entry/passive start (PEPS) system configured to receive the location of the portable device from the localization module and to perform a vehicle function including at least one of unlocking a door of the vehicle, unlocking a trunk of the vehicle, and allowing the vehicle to be started based on the location of the portable device.