GPS/Location Awareness

Here’s a new twist on GPS/Location awareness crimes.  While portable GPS devices have been a frequent favorite target for criminals, bad guys are now using the geolocation data to further target their victims.  Criminals have realized that the portable GPS device they had just stolen in a burglary from motor vehicle at the local mall likely has the “home” address of its owner stored on it. Knowing that the victim is at the mall or grocery store shopping, means they are likely not at home.  In several high profile cases, thieves/burglars have used the geolocation data to find the victim’s home and burglarize them while they were out.  A convenient way to take criminal advantage of the data stored in the GPS device. As more and more devices (GPS, mobile phone, iPod’s and the like) become location aware, they will provide a rich set of geographic information for criminals to [...]

Gadget Makers Can Find Thief, but Don’t Ask Librado Romero/The New York Times Samuel Borgese, who recently lost his Kindle, says Amazon needs another registration step for secondhand Kindles. By David Seagal Published: September 6, 2009 For decades, when an item was lost or stolen, a consumer went through three stages of grief: anger, mourning and acceptance. You would be miffed, then sad and then you would move on, in large part because moving on was the only option. Then came the Digital Age and with it, gadgets that manufacturers can keep tabs on — and even profit from — when they wind up in the hands of someone who has found or poached them. Which, in turn, has led to a fourth stage of gadget-related grief: rage. Specifically, rage at the gadget makers, which often know exactly who has a missing or stolen device, because in many instances it [...]