View from the cop: Crime & punishment
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AJC.com > Metro > View from the cop > Archives > 2008 > December > 26
Friday, December 26, 2008
Don’t help the crooks
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Crooks aren’t smart but they do take advantage of opportunities. You and I would question (hopefully) the morality of stealing something but these guys and girls don’t hesitate. Sometimes that is exactly how they get away with it.
We get a number of reports, especially for items stolen from a retail area or office area where the victim saw the item, turned away, and moments later turned back and the item was gone. A good example of that is the purse-hanging-on-the-chair theft. If the thief is quick and calm, he can grab the purse and be in the car and gone before the victim notices it. This is especially true in the drinking establishments where the reaction time is sometimes measured in minutes rather than seconds.
If you went through our recent theft-from-auto reports, you’d see not one owas a case where the thief smashed the window and THEN looked around. What he wanted was there to be seen. Look at how many targets are out there. Your car and a hundred others. Why would he break into yours to look around when moving along and finding another car with something in view is right next to you? Make it hard for these crooks!
Some Quick Tips for GPS Security:
• Consider using a friction mount instead of the suction-cup windshield mount most GPS devices ship with. Friction mounts rest on the dashboard instead being attached to the glass, and can be easily hidden under the seat when the car is parked. Plus, there’s no revealing ring on the windshield to tip off thieves.
• If you do use a windshield mount, remove it when parking the car and wipe off the suction cup smudge.
• Write down the serial number of your GPS and register it with the manufacturer. That way, if it ever goes missing you can prove the unit was yours. If your GPS includes a lock/password feature, use it. These simple passwords / PIN combinations are easily cracked within a day or two, but you might as well make things as difficult as possible for the criminals!
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