As Prices Drop, Thefts of GPS Units Soar

Tue Sep 18, 2007 12:54 PM EDT

business, technology, life, of, when-austin-sweazy

Brian Bergstein, AP Technology Editor

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2.8

1.8

{"commentId":1033633,"authorDomain":"gleuch"}

gleuch

There is always plan 'b': learn how to read a map.

{"commentId":1033633,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"gleuch"}

2 votes

#1 - Tue Sep 18, 2007 2:31 PM EDT

{"commentId":1033941,"authorDomain":"collin"}

Collin

Yet another reason to not listen to your wife. Had the doors been unlocked it would have been a $600 loss.. now it's $600 plus the cost of a window. Gee, thanks babe!

Better to lock your doors AND put valuable stuff out of site.

{"commentId":1033941,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"collin"}

#2 - Tue Sep 18, 2007 4:26 PM EDT

{"commentId":1034229,"authorDomain":"janeway77"}

Michael the Great

Remember: Locks only keep honest people out.

Meanwhile, excuse me for a moment while I run out to the car and put the Garmin in the trunk.....

{"commentId":1034229,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"janeway77"}

1 vote

#3 - Tue Sep 18, 2007 6:21 PM EDT

{"commentId":1035266,"authorDomain":"kikaiju"}

kikaiju

There are plenty of people who think leaving a GPS on the dash is a status symbol. That's why they leave it there for all to see. Same with car DVD players.

Same reason at Christmas you can count on people to put out the undisguised boxes from all their new toys. It's pure "look what WE got!" All you have to do is drive down any street and it's like a catalog for burglars. The smart way is to turn the boxes inside out, tear them up and place the shreds in plain black trash bags, etc. Be the house which did NOT advertise getting a plasma screen. It's OK.

The story mentions the GPS which was stolen without setting off the alarm. Most car alarms trigger only when a door is opened. Busting the glass -by far the most common way to break into a car- doesn't open a door and therefore doesn't set off most alarms. Not that anyone pays any attention to alarms anyway.

Never leave anything in a car that you can't afford to lose. That's really the story here.

{"commentId":1035266,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"kikaiju"}

#4 - Wed Sep 19, 2007 11:56 AM EDT

{"commentId":1035498,"authorDomain":"collin"}

Collin

kikaiju: I think you have some deep issues of jealousy and resentment. Or at the very least very poor assumptions. First of all the common Garmin GPS models are made to suction to the windshield. I never thought twice about taking it down until my neighbors car was broken into. It's a handy and affordable tool, not a status symbol. And the same goes for trash. Never have I put boxes such as the one from my TV out on the curb to brag. I never even considered that thieves might be driving around using that as a tool for spotting tasty targets.

Oh and car DVD players are the greatest invention ever created. Rather than restless and wild kids you have quiet kids stuck in some story. You can get these for what? like $100-$200 now? If you think that is status altering then I can only imagine how poor you must be. How are you even on a computer? Are you on like an 80088 or something? How did you get a web browser to run on that thing?

{"commentId":1035498,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"collin"}

#4.1 - Wed Sep 19, 2007 2:20 PM EDT

{"commentId":1036180,"authorDomain":"Lulu124"}

Lulu124

Why don't the companies who make GPS devices just make it so that when a theft is reported, they can turn off the device forever?

If it doesn't work, then there is no point in stealing it.

{"commentId":1036180,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"Lulu124"}

1 vote

#5 - Wed Sep 19, 2007 6:13 PM EDT

{"commentId":1036427,"authorDomain":"collin"}

Collin

There may be a way to do this sort of thing but not as easy as you think. For starters the GPS is one way. I am not sure that the sat's can determine the location of the device because there is nothing sent to identify it. GPS for the purpose of tracking would have a way of transmitting that location.

I may be way wrong here. I will have to look into what the technical workings of GPS technology are or someone else can chime in who is more familiar with the device hardware.

But yeah, that is the first direction my mind went to. "Why can't they just locate the device on the other side of the service?".. I'm sure some of them you can..

{"commentId":1036427,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"collin"}

1 vote

#5.1 - Wed Sep 19, 2007 7:40 PM EDT

{"commentId":1038995,"authorDomain":"janeway77"}

Michael the Great

There may be a way to do this sort of thing but not as easy as you think.

My DirecTV and Sirius Radio are both receivers only, and both of these can certainly be "shut off" by the respective providers.

The problem is that the GPS satellites are not owned by the GPS companies. So, the GPS companies don't have a say in what is transmitted over them. Accordingly, they can't send a "kill" signal; they can't send ANY signal.

I'm pretty sure the GPS satellites are owned by the US Military.

{"commentId":1038995,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"janeway77"}

1 vote

#5.2 - Thu Sep 20, 2007 5:14 PM EDT

{"commentId":1040188,"authorDomain":"Lulu124"}

Lulu124

Whoa! The US Military??? That's really interesting. Have to stew on that for a while.

{"commentId":1040188,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"Lulu124"}

1 vote

#5.3 - Fri Sep 21, 2007 3:08 AM EDT

{"commentId":1041371,"authorDomain":"collin"}

Collin

Why is that interesting? What is there to stew over? Lol, that's like the reaction I had when I found out that Arbys had curly fries. Show first and then confusion.. Do I want home style or curly.. it's not as easy a decision as you might think!

{"commentId":1041371,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"collin"}

#5.4 - Fri Sep 21, 2007 1:38 PM EDT

{"commentId":1056816,"authorDomain":"craig-c-rowley"}

Craig-188337

Mine got swiped along with broken window. I'm really irritated that I let my girlfriend talk me into removing the razor blades I had super glued to the back and hiding it instead.

I'm getting another one simply to trap someone into maiming their own hand for the rest of their pathetic lives.

{"commentId":1056816,"threadId":"151859","contentId":"969938","authorDomain":"craig-c-rowley"}

1 vote

#6 - Thu Sep 27, 2007 9:11 AM EDT

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As Prices Drop, Thefts of GPS Units Soar

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