In a recent news story, police were able to apprehend a criminal who stole a van because the van was equipped with a GPS tracking device.
A felon spotted a van that was property of a county in New York state and hopped in for a ride. As you probably know some crimes are planned, but many are simply crimes of opportunity. An idling van, an open door…these are the kinds of temptations that criminals find hard to resist.
The employee who had been entrusted with the van was quick to alert his employer and they in turn called the police. Because of the GPS tracking device inside, the police were able to find the van outside of a fast food restaurant. Without the GPS tracking device, who can say how long it would have taken for them to find the vehicle? It surely wasn’t the only county-owned van on the streets. So police would have had to be on the lookout for both the van, not really knowing exactly where it was or who was driving it. A detective in an unmarked car attempted to get the suspect to end his joy ride. The suspect left the vehicle and made a run for it.
Eventually the van thief, someone who had been arrested 17 times in the past, was apprehended.
There is another side to this story though-what about the employees who left the car running and accessible to an opportunistic thief? We didn’t get to read about the end of that person’s story. I’m sure the county was glad that this employee came forward quickly and did not try to hide the theft.
As great as GPS technology is and as much as it can do to help make things more efficient, it doesn’t beat old-fashioned common sense. Most employers would prefer of their employees didn’t leave company vehicles idling, but having a GPS tracking device can add an extra layer of security in the event that something like this does happen.
By: Nancy McCord
Posts Tagged ‘Common Sense’
To Catch a Thief – Use a GPS Tracking Device
March 30th, 2010Auto Security Systems – Deterrent Against Theft
November 5th, 2009
There are several ways for you to prevent your car from being stolen. Most anti theft devices will claim to be superior to all others. However, vehicle security devices are not the only way to protect your car. Auto security systems are one part of the system through which you can prevent theft.
Common sense is by far the best, and most effective method, to deter vehicle theft. The first thing that common sense demands is to make sure that you don’t leave your keys in the car, and don’t attempt to hide the key either. Secondly, always use your door locks, and make sure that you roll up the windows. Finally, make certain that you park your car in a safe place, and one that is well lit. When you make things more difficult for a thief, they are more likely to pass on your vehicle and move to an easier target.
It may not make a big difference which auto security system you select, because any of them will be a good deterrent against thieves trying to steal your car. Don’t worry too much about their makers’ claims. Whichever system that you buy needs to fit your needs and those of your car, and you need to use that system consistently to maximize its effectiveness.
GPS tracking devices can help police locate your vehicle if it has been stolen, and are difficult for thieves to deactivate. For this reason, they can act as deterrent devices, simply because they make it so easy for police to recover your vehicle. To make effective deterrents, just make sure that you use a window sticker or some other means to clearly identify your automobile as being armed with a GPS tracking device.
A subtle way to deter car thieves is etching your car’s VIN number into the glass, which will allow car parts to be tracked if your car is stolen and then broken up into parts for sale. Thieves who see these numbers will decide to try stealing another car instead.
Some vehicles are stolen more often than others. The list of cars that are stolen most often are listed in a number of car magazines. If you are in the market for a new vehicle you may want to consult these magazines before purchasing a car. Whether these vehicles have an auto security system or not they may be targets for thieves.
By: Brad Seabourne
Using Your Common Sense in Conjunction With Auto GPS Systems
October 22nd, 2009
Auto GPS systems. You might be asking what these are. To be more exact what is an auto GPS system? The answer is both simple and complex. So let’s start from the beginning. The letters GPS stands for global positioning satellites. What this means is that with the help of satellites you can find any person, any place or even any street in the world.
These global positioning satellites or GPS as we will be calling them use the coordinates you give them as well as the information from the satellites to show you certain positions. The auto gps systems use the satellites to help you find your way while you are traveling in the car. There are many different types of GPS systems you can use for vehicles but they all operate on the same principles.
The first item you will find with these auto GPS systems is the touch screen interface monitor. The easy to understand voice prompts will help to reinforce the directions you see on your gps monitor. In most of the auto GPS systems you will have a section of the city map displayed clearly. You will see your position on the map clearly. The route you need to take will also be highlighted.
The auto GPS systems will use the information about the city to show you the best (or shortest) routes to take. You will see where the railways crossing intersect the city roads. This will of course allow you to understand that if you are approaching any of these intersections your travel time may become changed or compromised.
To help you navigate the city street during the times when you are driving there is an electronic voice which will provide you with easy to understand yet simple directions. You will have the option of changing this voice from female to male as you desire. You should however be aware that due to electronic malfunctioning, the auto GPS systems can and will fail.
There have been instances reported of people who use these systems getting lost or misdirected. There are also times when the auto GPS systems will cause drivers to arrive at their destination hours later than usual. These occurrences however are relatively rare. You can avoid most of these such mishaps if you use your common sense in conjunction with the GPS street maps.
The advances in technology are helping to devise better ways to navigate through the city streets. You will find that these auto GPS systems will one day replace the need for bulky city and country maps altogether.
By: Muna Wa Wanjiru
