Thieves Are"Thieves are Using Bluetooth to Target Vehicle Break-Ins"

[maki2]

I am posting a link about this subject here for everyone who wants to avoid having their vehicle broken into by someone looking to steal their electronic communication devices that are bluetooth enabled including phones, tablets, cameras, computers, bluetooth speakers, etc.  This is a serious subject, I am very sorry that it might make some persons very nervous to read but better to be forewarned than caught up in an unfortunate incident that could have been prevented.

Here is the link to the posting from the website outside online, a company that is focused on things about travel, gear, adventures, etc.  I am sure if you look online you can find other articles about this same subject.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2406433/thieves-bluetooth-scanner-vehicle-break-in

The summation is that thieves are now using apps on their phones that can pin point the location of any bluetooth device you may have left inside your vehicle with amazing accuracy as to its exact location inside the vehicle. Some devices even when powered off will still emit a bluetooth signal. The thieves may even be able to identify exactly what devices you have because bluetooth items have a signature that is registered on a list that is readily available to the creators of these apps. The person using the app can also see your devices on their scanners when you are driving by them in your vehicle or when you are walking by them on the sidewalk or in the store. That means they could follow you right out of a parking lot to your next stop. This is a real downside of the current bluetooth technology in that it makes us easier targets. Of course anyone can download these bluetooth scanning apps, they do have some uses such as finding where you left one of your devices when you can't remember where you set it down.

Fortunately I have already had a long standing practice of keeping the bluetooth setting on my devices I take out and about with me turned off. But after reading this article I don't know if that means they can't be seen or not. Something  I intend to find out very soon.

 

[Stargazer]

Maki2,

Thank you for this info. I went to the link and it does say if you turn the device off, put it in airplane mode, or use a faraday cage, the device is undetectable.

More and more, I have been untethering myself from my phone for different reasons. You have just given me another. Always carried it in case of emergency but realized that if I have an accident or breakdown, someone else will have their phone and can call for help. Am considering a plain ole dumb flip phone. Why is it a scary thought to disconnect like that? Yesterday I used a phone book! Remember those? It was strangely easy.

 

[MrNoodly]

Meanwhile, in other news:

Law enforcement agencies around the country report that bands of Bluetooth device thieves are NOT invading National Forests, BLM lands, or rural areas in general, because they prefer the population/victim density of cities and suburbs. "I'm not going to drive all the way out to the boonies only to discover there's no one there to rip off," reports a thief who did not reveal his identity. "I can just go to the nearest mall parking lot and hit several dozen vehicles in a few minutes. This time of year I can also relieve people of their Christmas purchases. It's a much more efficient way to use my time and resources."

 

[Qxxx]

BT has a very short range, 10m for one class and maybe 100m for the other. Will not be easy to find someone in the woods by using BT, but of course you can usually see their vehicles from 100 yards away. Besides nowadays, it's a 90% or 99.9% probability people will have something worth stealing in their cars, in any case. Per the article, it might make it easier and quicker to do the job, and get away.

OTOH, vehicle break ins at trailheads have be a problem for many years. Everyone knows where the trailheads are, and usually no one is around for hours.

 

[maki2]

I do think that a thief at a trailhead parking lot or a boat ramp location etc is going to break in and won't be worried about grabbing just the electronics but instead everything of value.

Where the bluetooth app use for thieves would be handy is cruising the streets in a neighborhood to target parked cars and also the same in the parking lots at places such as Park and Rides, malls, sides streets around a downtown shopping district, parking for events, etc.

 

[B and C]

Another reason to avoid cities.

 

[Stargazer]

Mr Noodly.

Hahahahahahaha!!! Thank you!

 

[Qxxx]

 checking for unlocked cars.
Next door had 4 unlocked cars and a guy a couple doors down
Yes it was unlocked and the keys were under the seat!! 

Good grief, do you live in the dumbest neighborhood in the universe? (not counting you of course!!). I think the thieves call that easy pickin's.

I'm so paranoid about my van - especially given how much money I pay on it every month - I built an alarm that transmits a radio signal into the house or motel if staying in one on the road.