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United States24788 Posts
Received this in an e-mail today... surprisingly these things hadn't occured to me before.
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 specially 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.......
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 When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn.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 Within 20 minutes h e had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.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 text 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.
The more we rely on technology the easier it is for others to take advantage of us...
Personally I keep my gps in my glove box most of the time, and my cell phone only has first names so I guess I'm in decent shape.
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And when machines become intelligent and enslave us we're truly fucked. I always carry a machete with me in case a toaster tries sth funny and attacks me. You can't be safe enough.
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United States24788 Posts
On October 02 2009 20:59 underscore wrote:
And when machines become intelligent and enslave us we're truly fucked. I always carry a machete with me in case a toaster tries sth funny and attacks me. You can't be safe enough.
I think a little caution is good even if a lot is overkill.
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Thanks for the tips. The heists I mean, not how to prevent them 
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Well thats just common sense. Obviously you shouldnt name a contact like 'my sole reason to live in this world' then have your phone stolen and your contact lured and kidnapped.
Now it makes no sense to me to have your home saved in your gps, how would anyone get lost so frequently as to need it? Maybe from time to time you need to input it, but when youre already on the way back and you know youre lost. Not beforehand just so that daddy technology can tell us where to go to without us needing to lift a finger.
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United States24788 Posts
On October 02 2009 21:22 Cloud wrote:
Well thats just common sense. Obviously you shouldnt name a contact like 'my sole reason to live in this world' then have your phone stolen and your contact lured and kidnapped.
Now it makes no sense to me to have your home saved in your gps, how would anyone get lost so frequently as to need it? Maybe from time to time you need to input it, but when youre already on the way back and you know youre lost. Not beforehand just so that daddy technology can tell us where to go to without us needing to lift a finger.
Well it makes sense to me that people want the home feature in their gps. When you first hop in the car at a strange/new/far place, it's nice to just click the 'home' button and receive immediate feedback on which way to go. However, the suggestion of the article to make the 'home' coordinates near but not at your house might not be a bad idea.
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On October 02 2009 21:07 micronesia wrote:Show nested quote +On October 02 2009 20:59 underscore wrote:
And when machines become intelligent and enslave us we're truly fucked. I always carry a machete with me in case a toaster tries sth funny and attacks me. You can't be safe enough. I think a little caution is good even if a lot is overkill.
I agree it's just the tone of the text I dislike.
It's not the technology that hurts you it's your stupidity and ignorance.
Use passwords, use common sense, understand that that shiny thing in your hand is not a magic box.
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I dont think people visit unknown places that often, and when they do, its not often by car or its often too far and you are just able to find your way back by just looking for the highway.
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Just need some other car protection measures other than a locked door.....
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United States24788 Posts
On October 02 2009 21:33 underscore wrote:Show nested quote +On October 02 2009 21:07 micronesia wrote:On October 02 2009 20:59 underscore wrote:
And when machines become intelligent and enslave us we're truly fucked. I always carry a machete with me in case a toaster tries sth funny and attacks me. You can't be safe enough. I think a little caution is good even if a lot is overkill. I agree it's just the tone of the text I dislike. It's not the technology that hurts you it's your stupidity and ignorance. Use passwords, use common sense, understand that that shiny thing in your hand is not a magic box.
I understand your point, but newer technologies can cause even reasonable, thinking people to make mistakes that expose themselves, so this isn't just a "dumb people will be dumb" thing.
On October 02 2009 21:35 Cloud wrote:
I dont think people visit unknown places that often, and when they do, its not often by car or its often too far and you are just able to find your way back by just looking for the highway.
This has not been my experience. I think it depends on where you live though.
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Cooool. never thought abt the mobile phone part
+1 for the robbers
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On October 02 2009 22:25 chongu wrote:
Cooool. never thought abt the mobile phone part
+1 for the robbers
Yup, pretty sweet heist, almost comparable to the helicopter escape robbery.
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Whoa, thats crazy. Haha my phone has stupid nicknames for ppl. so i guess they cant get me through that.
But the whole car gps thing, had to been like planned out by these thieves or the theives r someone they know.
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And I thought the modern criminal had lost all creativity and enterprise.
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I have GPS through my phone and it always stays with me so I guess i'm pretty safe amirite? On the other hand, with technology or not, if a criminal wants to take something from you they are going to do it by any means necessary. Its basically up to their will for criminal intent.
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Braavos36402 Posts
On October 02 2009 21:35 Cloud wrote:
I dont think people visit unknown places that often, and when they do, its not often by car or its often too far and you are just able to find your way back by just looking for the highway.
this is not the case at all
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On October 02 2009 23:29 Shigure wrote:
Whoa, thats crazy. Haha my phone has stupid nicknames for ppl. so i guess they cant get me through that.
But the whole car gps thing, had to been like planned out by these thieves or the theives r someone they know.
They probably had planned to do it to anyone at the game that met the criteria instead of planning for that specific family but ya, there is a chance. Wow, feel bad for those people.
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Am I the only one who thought it was weird that the husband could receive a text like "hey babe what's our PIN number?" and not at least call back to make fun of her for being a complete idiot?
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On October 03 2009 01:24 Maero wrote:
Am I the only one who thought it was weird that the husband could receive a text like "hey babe what's our PIN number?" and not at least call back to make fun of her for being a complete idiot?
yeah lol.
can't believe he texted it back
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United States4796 Posts
Bank aside, the ransacking of the house was really surprising.
People need to watch their GPS's more carefully.
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sufficient biometrics could allow the concealed bayonet in the steering column to impale the intruder and prevent all of this
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the chances of this happening are so incredibly slim that wasting time preventing it is probably irrational
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On October 03 2009 02:18 Failsafe wrote:
the chances of this happening are so incredibly slim that wasting time preventing it is probably irrational
I find it hilarious that your ID is "Failsafe."
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Failsafe, that's a very risky way to live your life.
Maybe it's not likely that your cell phone will be stolen and a creative criminal will contact a loved one asking for critical information, but it's not unlikely at all that any one of a million different things we do in our lives to protect us will have a critical pay off that saves our butt and makes all the 'hassle' (it's really not that difficult in most cases) worth it.
It's like not wearing a seat belt when driving, or a helmet when biking because most of the time you don't get into crashes. News flash, it takes two seconds you weren't going to spend doing anything better, and it's worth it.
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On October 03 2009 02:17 Failsafe wrote:
sufficient biometrics could allow the concealed bayonet in the steering column to impale the intruder and prevent all of this
then you would get sued for entrapment and they would win too
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On October 03 2009 03:02 Caller wrote:Show nested quote +On October 03 2009 02:17 Failsafe wrote:
sufficient biometrics could allow the concealed bayonet in the steering column to impale the intruder and prevent all of this then you would get sued for entrapment and they would win too
Its a trap! lol
And seriously taking pre-cautions is the way to go, instead of regretting it later when its too late.
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I've thought about this very carefully and have now updated all my cellphone contacts, they're now named and ordered by the ransom amount I think they're worth. For the sake of adventure, I've listed myself as "Super Rich Dad" and have added my home address with nearby landmarks to make it extra clear.
Tomorrow I'm going to drive through the nearest ghetto, chuck my phone out the window then wait excitedly at home to see what happens.
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i have friends that put so much of their info on their GPS that i wouldn't be impressed if one day it would jump off the car and rob their houses with his electronic cables...
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On October 02 2009 20:59 underscore wrote:
And when machines become intelligent and enslave us we're truly fucked. I always carry a machete with me in case a toaster tries sth funny and attacks me. You can't be safe enough.
Funny you use toaster it's one of the few technologies that have stayed nearly exactly the same in design and still the same in concept for more then half a century.
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I take my GPS with me when I leave the car. I can totally see that happening though. The cell phone, not so much.
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i dont think theres a moral to the story besides two people getting sick unlucky
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The dad, mom etc info is the way I find out who the phone belongs to at work when someone brings in a found phone. Good and Bad use the same methods.
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United States24788 Posts
On October 03 2009 05:08 zulu_nation8 wrote:
i dont think theres a moral to the story besides two people getting sick unlucky
If people don't take precautions then these types of crimes will probably become more commonplace.
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I just lost like $160 bucks withdrawing from a pub atm. The machine printed receipts but didn't spit out any cash.
Pub don't give a shit, bank don't give a shit and the atm operators won't admit to having a fault.
god i'm so pissed off right now.
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United States24788 Posts
On October 03 2009 10:14 haduken wrote:
I just lost like $160 bucks withdrawing from a pub atm. The machine printed receipts but didn't spit out any cash.
Pub don't give a shit, bank don't give a shit and the atm operators won't admit to having a fault.
god i'm so pissed off right now.
There is recourse for this. Where do you live?
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I don't use GPS and my cellphone doesn't allow me to text. Guess I'm in the clear.
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Hong Kong20321 Posts
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United States24788 Posts
On October 03 2009 16:16 alffla wrote:
husband was an idiot
I agree, but, I still think this shows that having identifying labels in your contact list can be a bit risky.
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On October 03 2009 05:08 zulu_nation8 wrote:
i dont think theres a moral to the story besides two people getting sick unlucky
Yeah, I would never even think of this shit happening. These two just got unlucky that some thieves with half a brain robbed them. You're not going to hear about this happening every other day on the news. Even so, better safe then sorry I suppose.
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As much as I appreciate the article for its ' awareness ' factor I think its pretty pointless to try to use this as an example for people to be more careful.
For example, even if you don't list loved ones last names or use endearing nicknames, a creative criminal could just look up your call records to see who you call the most. On top of that, they could look through your text messages and voice mail. Another thing is the addresses of contacts. Should you not list those in your phone too on the offchance that your phone gets stolen and the thieves now have the address of your friends? Phones with cameras? They could use the images to locate your house.
Even if you didn't list your home as ' HOME ' on your GPS, they can easily browse through your previous locations in recent order.
So basically the only way to ' prevent ' disaster like a seatbelt in this case would be to have a program clear all your pictures/text messages/call logs every single time you close your phone or something. Pretty dumb and a waste of time. Instead you should just be aware these types of things could happen and put more emphasis on having your phone on you at all times. Its kinda like a wallet. Should you not carry pictures or your driver's license or credit card?
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The gps one is creative and understandable that people would do that. The pin though... That's just stupidity
Thieves have always preyed on stupidity, technology just makes it easier for people to be stupid
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