The Bad Side of Technology-Protect yourself

GPS units:


A couple of weeks ago a couple 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.


CELL PHONE:


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withdrawn.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 Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the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 phone 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.


*PLEASE PASS THIS ON *

I never thought about THAT! As of now, I no longer have 'home' listed on my cell phone.


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.