Thread: Theft of car pc's?

I work in the largest walled prison in the world and I come across alot of different people. Some of them are car thieves who I have gotten to know. I asked a few ( 2 of them) if they could give me a list of things they look for and do before getting OUR ride...here are some things they look for......
1- Try not to park in a spot that is hard to see your car or for other people to see.
2- Tinted windows usually means there is something to hide. (not counting on the rear windows--talking about the doors).
3- A tinted window is really bad--They can break the window and it will stay in one piece...it makes it easier to pull out the window with less noise. And also breaks quietly.
4- DO NOT have stickers showing what brand or products you have. This is a real eye catcher.
5- Cars in carports are tooo easy to get at.
6- Dont keep the same routine if you live in an apartment complex or busy parking area. Park in different places to throw thieves off.
7- Dont leave wallets, credit cards, cd or anything that might be worth $100.00 or so in the open. One inmate told me he broke into a car cause he seen a bunch of change. He got $5.00
8- If your deck has a detachable face--take it off. Put it somewhere out of sight. Now how many of us do that I know I never take it out. But at least hide it.
9- If you have an alarm use more than just shock sensors for activation. Motion sensors work great. Mercury switches also work good.
10- If you have a 2nd battery for your system, use it to power the alarm. If your front battery has the power cut your alarm will still work off the 2nd battery.
11- Dont install the siren close to the bottom front. Put it high on the firewall. The siren should be heat resistant so the engine should not harm it.
12- Put your led light high on the dash board so it can be easily seen. One inmate said " If I get out and walk up to the car and I dont see the led light till I get up on the car, hell Im already here so I will see whats in it".
13- An alarm with a pager system is good but the ones with a gps system are the best.
14- If your alarm keeps going off at night its usually because someone is trying to get you to lower the sensitivity so he can break into it easier. " This method always works, people get soo ****ed off they sometimes turn off the alarm" one inmate said.
15- If you have a system, mount the box to the car. DO NOT mount your amps to the box.
16- Do not keep your locks to your wheels where they can be easily found. Most of the time if you hide the locks thieves will find it. Also--Use two different set of locks on each rim.
17- Park your car where it is most light. If you have a garage---use it.
18- If you have to leave your car in a parking lot, park it out in the open in a lighted area. The more cars around the easier to get at.
19- Have a dummy valet switch where it is easily found ( under the dash is where most people have them) and hook it up to your alarm so when the thief tries to engage it, it will trigger the alarm instead of shuting it off.
20- A thief will case the car for several weeks or months to see your routine. This gives him an idea what you do and when.

One thing I have learned is if someone wants your car bad enough they will get it. The things I have listed may not stop everyone, but why not do all we can to prevent someone from taking OUR stuff. I would like to take this time and thank the two prisoners who made this list possible----prisoner Dumitrescu #274577 (I call him by his first name--Clem) and prisoner Dark #320684.
If I get more info I will post it here and please feel free to post any other methods of keeping people away from our cars.

Originally Posted by GoHybrid

theft seems to be most often a crime of opportunity. If you take certain measures to remove the temptation, i find it's less likely to happen.

for instance:
1. don't leave valuables in your car, certainly don't leave them visible.
2. tint your windows. this may seem silly to some, but for the thief who definitely isn't going to risk breaking in in broad daylight, it's going to make it darn near impossible to see what he's getting into at night. Again, if it's not easy or clear what they are getting, they'll be less inclined to take the risk.
3. if you are installing your own screen, do a good job of making it appear OEM. again, if the thief can see that it's obviously held in by bondo and duct tape, that's going to be easy to grab.
4. go with a double-din unit. I have to say i've never seen a single-din factory GPS system. If i were walking by a car and saw a screen there, i'd think, probably built in. If i saw a single-din plastered with brand logos and chrome and flashy buttons, i'd think that would probably be an easy grab.
5. Get a car alarm. Lets face it, if a thief wants your stuff, he'll have it. But the thief that is presented with a honking, flashing car probably isnt' going to hang around for as long. Maybe that haste will save you some of your stuff.
6. be aware of where you park. if you can, park near foot traffic. nobody wants to commit a crime in front of an audience. parking under street lights... again, nobody wants attention drawn to themselves.
7. lastly, if you are that concerned about theft, talk to your insurance company and verify that they will cover any modifications done to your car. I know both Geico and State Farm will replace installed systems. In my experience, that also included repairing all the damaged dash and console parts from the break in. It may cost a few extra bucks a month, or nothing at all, but it gives you some peace of mind that should the worst happen, you'll be back in business in short order.

Why is this not stickied?