Skip to main content

GPS


A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and especially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard.

When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen.

The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain
entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.

Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it. Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know where you live if your GPS were stolen.


MOBILE PHONES


I never thought of this...but a thief did!


This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen.. Her handbag, which
contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet... Etc...was stolen.

20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.'

When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.




Moral of the lesson:


Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list.



Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....

And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.



Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you.



* I never thought about the above! As of now, I no longer have 'home' listed on my cell phone.
This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.
Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

Thanks Art. This is very good info for all.

Also the garage door opener is a hot commodity. Remember a thief does not need a GPS in order to find you. How many people have a some mail or a document that has their home address on it. We don't think of these things. Also how many have the garage door opener out in the open for all to see. We all do it for convenience but it a very dangerous.

Remember to use common sense!

Lets all be safe out there.
First of all... did a "friend" tell you this or did a "friend" forward you an email that said a "friend" had told them this?

I doubt it'd be possible to remove every piece of info from your car with your name and address on it unless you live in a state that doesn't require registration and proof of insurance... doesn't everyone leave those in the car?

Regarding the PIN number story... typical alarmist urban legend. Ever try to "withdraw all your money" from an ATM? Unless you have less than $300, it probably won't work. Almost all banks have a low "Daily limit" for ATM withdrawals.

If you do decide to remove "HOME" from your cell phone, be sure to add ICE (In Case of Emergency) so the morgue can call someone to claim the body.


http://www.snopes.com/crime/intent/gps.asp
Last edited by JasonR
So, I'm browsing through the new Readers Digest (okay, old fashioned yes, what can I say?!) this weekend, and lo and behold that very advice about the GPS and remote and the texting and the pin was in it. The story is called "How to Find Anything."


This brings up a bigger rant, and if you'll bear with me a second....

I'm getting very tired of Internet foolishness getting passed along as actual truth by legitimate media who no longer bother to take the time to validate their stories. Whatever happened to "two sources for confirmation before publication"!!!! If I hadn't done the research back in my journalism school days, my professors and editors would have flunked me, ripped me a new one, and thrown me out the door.

Okay, rant over. You may now pick on the loser who's still reading Readers Digest in this day and age.
Yes Jason you can remove every piece of paper the requires a name and address even in a state that you have to carry a registration. You can hold onto the registration but remove the name and address. If you are pulled over to show registration you have the right to tell the officer why you removed the name and address from the registration. Then you can show them a drivers license that will have the required info they are looking for.

Add Reply

Post
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×
×