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During my occasional check of new urban legends on Snopes.com, I
came across this interesting tidbit about thieves who break into
cars, steal the GPS, find the home address, then go and loot the
place. Please read the article for more accurate
information.
http://www.snopes.com/crime/intent/gps.asp
The folks at Snopes make some good points: Why would a thief go to
all the trouble of going to rob a house that may not be empty or
might be guarded by an alarm system or dogs when they could just
loot the car? It’s a lot less hassle.
Be that as it may, thieves do work in mysterious ways. And if
you do use a GPS or online mapping service, we have provided some
tips. We have also included some basic road trip/traveling
tips as well. We know our list is incomplete; that’s
the idea. We want our readers to add on as you see fit.
GPS/Online Mapping Service Tips
NOTE: In terms of
online mapping, this assumes you planned your route at home or the
office, then printed the directions and brought them with you in
the car.
1) For directions, don’t use your home address
as your starting address. Use a fake address or that
of a nearby business. After all, the first steps in these
directions often only tell you how to get to the main road.
If you need directions to the main road from where you live, you
should probably just stay home.
The logic behind this, paranoid as it is, is that if someone breaks
into your car, they could find the directions with your home
address. One quick look around the car will tell any thief
how many people are traveling and who they are. Now they know
where you live AND that your house is empty. Better use a
fake address, just to be safe.
2) Don’t stick your GPS to your
windshield. I’ve recently read police reports
that say thieves walk around parking lots and decks looking for
suction cup marks on windshields, which often serve as an
indication that a GPS device is in the automobile.
You’re better off mounting it somewhere else, just using
Velcro®, leaving it in the center console, even when in
use, or finding another way to mount it to your dash.
3) Clear the cache on your GPS. The
same logic applies from #1.
4) Don’t list your home address on your GPS as
“Home,” “Location #1,” “Base
camp,” etcetera. If a thief does get your GPS,
it’s better to leave them confused and have them give up than
tell them exactly where you live. Remember, they might not
rob you that day; they may wait until they know the house is
empty.
Various other road trip safety tips
1) Remove all mail from your
automobile. This is the same logic as from #1, but
this included magazines, bills and junk mail. If you’re
going on a road trip and want to read a magazine, remove the
address label. If you can’t, mark over it with a black
marker.
2) Don’t have your home address on your luggage
tags. Instead, use your work address, a PO Box or
just your E-mail address or your mobile phone number.
3) Stop your mail and newspapers before you
travel. It’s been said a million times before,
but it bears repeating. I’m amazed at how often, even
in my own neighborhood, I see piles of newspapers and overstuffed
mailboxes, usually in the summer months. If a thief saw that,
they would have found their next target. Also, bring in the
trash can.
4) Tell a family member, neighbor or trusted friend
you’re leaving town. You may also want to
notify the police, just to be safe. The more eyes you have on
your place, the better.
That’s all we have. What do you have? Share
with us and help your fellow travelers.
© 2009 GetOutTheMap.net
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