Vehicle Tracking

Auto Thieves Don’t Get it – GPS Tracking Means You Will Get Caught

Vehicle Tracking — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 13:24:13 +0000

Never Mess with a Fleet Vehicle Operation

GPS Tracking Serves Two Purposes

Running a fleet business is difficult enough without the technological advances that have been invented and now assist in day to day operations. This is no less true when you stop to consider all of the downsizing that has taken place in most companies. More work is piled on fewer workers. Unless a business wants to risk losing employees because of strenuous work environments, they would do well to implement the best technology enhancements that they can afford.

For fleet operations, that means a GPS Tracking system is mandatory. There are two major reasons for this.

Running a Successful Fleet Company

Fleet operations have to be run in such a manner that customer service is the top priority. Moving packages with trucks and drivers is a maddening job, but it is made easier with a GPS Tracking system that allows for real-time monitoring of a fleet vehicles locations, direction of travel and speeds.

Drivers tend to get tunnel-vision during their runs. All they can see is their current destination and little else. It helps to have those around them that can help give corrections to their routes and advance warnings of traffic tie-ups and weather updates that will affect them.

Recovering Stolen Vehicles

Recently, a stolen limousine was recovered because it was outfitted with a GPS Tracking device. This is not an uncommon occurrence, but it underscores two things.

First, the need exists for GPS Tracking for more than just business purposes. Recovery from theft is a prime reason. Consider that if there is no damage to the vehicle, it can be put back into use immediately. Also, insurance companies embrace these devices because it keeps their risk of payout of a claim lower. And, in turn they often reduce the premiums on a vehicle because of that.

Next, those that engage in the activities of stealing vehicles should avoid fleet vehicles at all costs. But then, those that do these things are not known for their grand intelligence.

Most auto thefts end up with the same result: a captured suspect and the conviction of the same. Still, it is better to be prepared than not because if you are not, your competition is certainly there ahead of you. And that is one thing that you must avoid, too.

More Fire Fighting Operations Going High Tech with GPS Tracking

Vehicle Tracking — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 13:20:17 +0000

Additional Safety Measures Built into its Use

Lower Mistakes Makes for Saved Buildings and Lives

There is no doubt about it: GPS Tracking is having an impact in the area of fire fighting operations. Just like other public safety organizations, fire departments all over are reaping the benefits of GPS outfitted trucks to assist in fire emergencies.

These systems promote the following goals of fire and emergency rescue operations:

Faster and Efficient Response Times

The best and fastest routes are displayed while driving to an emergency. Also available is the location of hydrants, water lines, gas lines and even electric service lines.

Better Fire Fighting Information

One of the best features of these systems it that they can provide a good overview of a fire via satellite picture and help to determine where best to focus the highest amount of attention to put the blaze out. That has already been used with great success.

Works with Existing GPS Systems

This helps keep the costs low in the implementation phase. If a department already has outfitted their vehicles with GPS Tracking one of these new systems will tie right into it and provide the same level of service, but with the new features added into the system.

Sharing of Data

When a department is called upon to assist at a fire outside of their territory, the unfamiliarity with that part of the community can pose a problem. Now that is gone because these new systems supply the most direct route to the address of the fire.

Also, updating the maps of hydrants can be performed by a single person rather than the several that used to be necessary.

In addition to all of this, fire and rescue vehicles can be monitored for proper use. While this would not likely be an issue with the larger trucks, the smaller vehicles used for things other than fire runs can be watched to make sure they are not being used in a manner that goes against department policy.

The drivers can also be watched to make sure they are obeying speed limits and also that they are where they should be and not performing personal business while on the job.

It all fits nicely into a package that helps fire / rescue departments run as lean and efficiently as possible. That alone can help save money which is important in these uncertain economic times in which we find ourselves.

Tracking System Records Evidence in Accidents, Other Driving Incidents

Vehicle Tracking — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 15:28:25 +0000

Many people who have a basic knowledge of vehicle tracking systems are usually most familiar with real time GPS tracking units. Those who place these electronic gadgets on vehicles are able to “see” from a remote computer or a smartphone where that asset is and where it is heading, with a position update every few seconds or minutes.

All well and good, but the real-time vehicle tracking system should not overshadow the value of a passive GPS tracking device, which has excellent applications in its own right. Among the top uses are for fleet management and accident investigations.

A passive GPS tracking system stores data on vehicle location within the unit. The tracking system is later retrieved for later download. A quality-made passive GPS vehicle tracking device like LandAirSea Systems’ GPS Tracking Key and GPS Tracking Key Pro have extensive memory. Up to 100 hours of movement are recorded, and even then, it doesn’t stop working. The memory chip works “first in, first out” with data, meaning once capacity is met, the newest driving data will replace the oldest.

On-the-road incidents involving law enforcement, including moving violations (tickets) and accidents are very serious business. Since they involve legal and sometimes medical issues, they can be long, drawn-out affairs. Vehicle tracking systems are great for referencing facts, rather than relying solely on memory, witnesses, or the hand-written notes of a police officer.

Passive vehicle tracking devices record speed, direction, time and date, location by latitude and longitude or street address, duration of trips and miles logged. Better vehicle tracking devices such as the GPS Tracking Key and GPS Tracking Key Pro will give position updates in one-second increments, so there are almost no detectible gaps in coverage.

Memories fade over time and witnesses are not always reliable, but a GPS vehicle tracking report is accurate and detailed. The data will be as clear a year or two after the road incident as it is the day of the occurrence.

LandAirSea analysts recently pulled news reports from two accidents. Consider how a vehicle tracking system helped – or would have helped – in the investigations:

Vehicle Tracking System Verifies Bogus Insurance Claim

The fleet management supervisor of a HVAC company in Sidmouth, Devon, UK referred to a service van’s on-board vehicle tracking system after one of his drivers was blamed for a minor vehicle accident. The “victim” claimed a serviceman was speeding and sideswiped him on a country road. A side view mirror was torn off and the matter went to insurance claim.

The fleet management supervisor tracked the claimant’s time, date and location of the accident and found the identity of the employee allegedly responsible for the mishap. The engineer claimed he had pulled over the vehicle and the other car clipped him while passing.

The company, called Ford’s, installed passive vehicle tracking systems on all its fleet vehicles about three years ago to track work orders and analyze employee schedules for inefficiencies. The tracking system records exact position, time, date and speed of vehicles. The vehicle tracking report revealed, in no uncertain terms, that the service vehicle at the time of the accident was not speeding; it was not moving at all.

Ford’s fleet management supervisor Tim Ford explained that often, when a member of the public gets involved in a minor accident, they find an easily-identifiable vehicle in the vicinity at the time and record contact information from its exterior advertising, then blame its driver for the unfortunate encounter.

“We were thrilled to have the evidence available, with just a few keystrokes,” said Ford. “Confronted with the report, the other driver backed down.”

Stunt Woman Dies in Crash on Way to Filming

Hollywood stunt woman April Erin Stirton met a tragic and ironic fate April 6, 2010 when she died in an accident on Highway 101 near the Laurel Canyon exit. California Highway Patrol investigators believe the 28-year-old, riding her motorcycle to a performing job, was speeding and tried to pass a tow truck. Witnesses said she lost control of the bike and skidded. Both she and the motorcycle got lodged under the rear wheels of another truck, police said.

Stirton, who lived in North Hollywood and had worked on shows like “CSI and “True Blood” was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

Was this woman, clearly skilled at driving in dangerous situations due to her career, over-confident or distracted? She did not survive to tell her side of the story. Could a vehicle tracking system on the motorcycle have recorded evidence that another driver was to blame?

Much time and money can be saved when a driver involved in a dispute has access to an extensive vehicle tracking report on the incident in question. Fleet management directors, parents of teen drivers, self-employed business people and many others use vehicle tracking as a means of protecting their families and businesses from liability and harm.

Sources: Materials Handling World , Los Angeles Times

Tracking System Records Evidence in Accidents, Other Driving Incidents

Vehicle Tracking — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 20:00:48 +0000

LandAirSea analysts recently pulled news reports from two accidents. Consider how a vehicle tracking system helped – or would have helped – in the investigations:

Vehicle Tracking System Verifies Bogus Insurance Claim

“We were thrilled to have the evidence available, with just a few keystrokes,” said Ford. “Confronted with the report, the other driver backed down.”

Stunt Woman Dies in Crash on Way to Filming

Stirton, who lived in North Hollywood and had worked on shows like “CSI and “True Blood” was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

Sources: Materials Handling World , Los Angeles Times

Surveillance Video Suggests Arson at Restaurant

Vehicle Tracking — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:58:31 +0000

Rival Restaurateur Charged in Crime

NEW ORLEANS, LA. – A rivalry between two owners of Asian restaurants near New Orleans got really heated when one approached the other’s establishment under the cover of night and allegedly set it on fire.

Seventy-four-year-old Mae Fong was arrested in Kenner, La. and is accused of setting the blaze at Young’s Garden Chinese Restaurant. Police say a hidden surveillance camera captured an image of Fong near the building at 3 a.m., Oct. 2. That is the approximate time investigators believe the fire was deliberately set.

Mae owns Fong’s Chinese & Cantonese Restaurant, about one block away in the same neighborhood.

A liquid accelerant was used to burn the Young’s Garden restaurant, police said. The building suffered up to $60,000 in damages and was closed for repair.

Fong’s family claims she is innocent.

But the police chief Steve Caraway said that he believed the surveillance camera provided very valuable evidence that will lead to conviction.

It’s hard to refute what can be seen with your own eyes on surveillance video. That is why covert surveillance is a choice many business owners are making.

The loss of time and materials due to an inefficient work environment, slacking employees, cheating and petty theft might seem inconsequential. But the accumulated loss is significant. Surveillance cameras can cut this drain on the pocketbook and improve the bottom line.
Another benefit is when a surveillance camera “catches on tape” actions an employer wasn’t expecting, such as sexual harassment, punching of another’s time card, drinking, consuming drugs, sleeping on the job or other policy violations.
One of the biggest threats to business is competition. Hidden cameras might uncover rival companies or their designated “moles” stealing physical or intellectual property, recruiting your employees or trying to sabotage operations in other ways.

Every day, countless crimes like robbery, vandalism and arson are solved when incriminating evidence is recorded by a surveillance camera. Hidden cameras have busted holes in many well-constructed alibis.

Surveillance cameras, sometimes paired with audio, sometimes not, are readily available today in retail spy stores and at ecommerce sites on the Internet. Systems can be as simple and inexpensive as a spy pen or a hidden camera in a hardcover book; to solutions costing thousands of dollars. Top-of-the-line surveillance cameras can pan, zoom, pivot and respond to motion and light. Some hidden cameras can be monitored live and others record images and/or sound for later review.

A business person would be wise to investigate the variety of surveillance products available on the market, and perhaps ask fellow, trusted business people about their experiences with covert surveillance products. Unbiased law enforcement personnel and security experts might also recommend a quality surveillance system. Inquiries should lead to an informed purchase and a surveillance system that is likely to pay for itself in a short period of time.

Source: The Times-Picayune of New Orleans

GPS Tracking: Surveillance vs. Counter Surveillance

Vehicle Tracking — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:53:52 +0000

Both Systems Finding Challenges in Courts of Law

“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”

Isaac Newton’s third law of motion could be loosely applied to the debate over GPS tracking technologies.

Every time a commercial product is introduced that will allow someone to secretly record or copy something or someone; another product will follow that will either try to find it, or foil it.

This is the case with the growing industry of GPS tracking devices. GPS tracking devices, such as vehicle tracking systems, fall under the category of surveillance products. These GPS tracking products – which locate and track an object using satellite radio signals – have only been available for civilian use for about the last 10 years. And already there is counter surveillance equipment on the market that purports to either locate the vehicle tracking system, or to prevent it from operating properly.

Courts struggle from time to time with GPS tracking data and whether it is reliable enough to be used in legal proceedings. Another question is whether the GPS tracking data was obtained legally. And a third: Does the vehicle tracking evidence lose any credibility if there was an attempt to block, disguise or muffle the GPS satellite radio transmissions?

Some lawyers have argued that if GPS tracking data is “spoofable” or “jammable,” it can’t be guaranteed accurate and it shouldn’t be admissible as evidence. Supporters of covert GPS tracking say all kinds of evidence (photographs, audio recordings, hard copy documents) can be tampered with, so all should be admitted as evidence and judged for credibility, case by case.

There are three basic types of devices designed in defense to GPS vehicle tracking systems.

What is a GPS detector?
GPS detectors work much like radar detectors. The hardware detects GPS tracking transmissions by using a radio frequency scanner. It does not affect the vehicle tracking system’s operation; It just warns the driver that a vehicle tracking device is present.
What is GPS jamming?
GPS jammers broadcast on the same frequencies assigned to the GPS tracking system. They try to deliberately interfere with vehicle tracking data transmission by blanketing the frequency with noise or blocking the vehicle tracking transmission completely.
What is GPS spoofing?
GPS spoofers also work on the GPS radio frequencies. They try to cause the GPS tracking system to transmit incorrect (spoofed) location data; or confuse the receiver into thinking it is in a different place than it actually is.

Should all GPS tracking data be dismissed from evidence, merely because the potential exists that it could be tampered with?

We approach this first by considering each category of GPS counter surveillance individually.

GPS detectors are nothing more than an irritation to law enforcement. Vehicle tracking detectors merely tip off the driver that someone is tracking them. What happens from there is the driver’s decision. Detectors, logically, would lead to the lack of evidence. The fact that the courts have GPS tracking data to consider means that the detector failed to do its job.
Similarly, GPS jammers are a major irritation to police who are following a subject with vehicle tracking equipment. This GPS tracking hardware will create gaps in the vehicle path or eliminate whole sections of a trip, but what remains of the trip should be considered accurate and reliable. GPS tracking position updates are independent of one another. The absence or masking of one reading does not taint the rest of the vehicle tracking report.
GPS spoofers are a different story because GPS spoofers deliberately feed the police incorrect vehicle tracking information. It’s unlikely a GPS spoofer would be involved in a criminal case because, in order to make a decision to spoof, the criminal would have to be aware he is being tracked. That’s not usually the case, unless the criminal is ordered by the courts to wear a GPS tracking bracelet.

Second, spoofers skew all the GPS tracking receivers in an area, not just one GPS. Suspicious readings can be compared to other vehicle tracking receivers in the area; and the spoofer can easily be verified or discounted.

Also, it’s very difficult to create a spoofed or fake vehicle tracking trip that makes sense and is believable. Temporarily throwing the police off your path is one thing. Making up an entirely new path is another. Like counterfeiters with currency, an expert might produce a fine reproduction, but it’s the little errors that will stick out like a sore thumb.

Should counter surveillance GPS tracking equipment be illegal?

Some say that would be like throwing the baby out with the bathwater. If GPS tracking detectors, jammers and spoofers create a safety hazard or if they are used to obstruct justice, they should certainly be regulated. But counter surveillance vehicle tracking equipment cannot be declared illegal, because they have a legitimate use outside of law enforcement. Counter surveillance GPS tracking equipment is used by adults who suspect that they are being electronically followed: their partner is spying on them, a personal investigator is on their tail, or their boss or business competitor is nosing around into their personal lives.

It is not uncommon for GPS tracking data to be presented into evidence in court, to prove an individual or object was at a certain location at a certain time. Vehicle tracking has earned its reputation for extremely reliable and accurate evidence in court. The presence of counter surveillance equipment does not negate that fact.

Case in point: A New York area man was recently convicted of the second degree murder of a babysitter. A vehicle tracking device his wife planted on his truck recorded the vehicle in a sparsely-populated, wooded area for an inordinate amount of time, when the man should have been driving the girl home from a babysitting job.

Surveillance – Shop Keeper Posts Video on YouTube in Hopes of IDing Burglar

Vehicle Tracking — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:34:22 +0000

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A Michigan shop owner came up with a novel way to catch the guy who broke into his video game store: He posted the surveillance video on Facebook and YouTube.

On Sept. 6, someone broke in the front door of a GranLan Gaming Center in downtown Grand Rapids. The shop owner, Arck Bauer, got great return on investment for the video surveillance system he had installed a month earlier.
A single, stationary surveillance camera was placed high on a wall in the video gaming business. The surveillance camera, equipped with motion-activated video, was fixed and focused on the doorway.

The surveillance film is in black and white and a bit grainy because the store lights were out. A man with a shaved or bald head, wearing a T-shirt and shorts, can be seen hopping over the threshold of the front door, through smashed glass. He wanders toward the counter and cash register, then casually glances up, straight at the surveillance camera. Startled, he turns and runs, exiting empty-handed, the same way he came in.

It appears from the surveillance video that the criminal was inexperienced. He didn’t seem to be in any hurry and he apparently had no idea what he would take in the heist. The surveillance system put a quick end to his adventure.

Nevertheless, the shop owner is determined to find the burglar. In addition to providing police with the surveillance footage, Bauer sent a copy to social networking sites Facebook and YouTube. He’s hoping the surveillance clips will get thousands of hits and that one viewer might recognize the vandal. Match the man with fingerprints police found at the scene and justice will have been served; thanks to an ordinary surveillance camera, placed in plain view.

Bauer is convinced the criminal would have, in fact stolen something, had he not protected the store with a surveillance system.

“He went through the trouble of breaking a door, I’m sure he would have hung around if that surveillance camera were not there,” he said.

Vehicle Tracking – How Vehicle Tracking Works

Vehicle Tracking — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:54:56 +0000

A business or consumer places a GPS tracking system inside or outside of the desired vehicle they wish to monitor. Many tracking systems have weather-resistant casing and magnetic mounts that give the user the flexibility and option of outside placement. The tracking systems can be powered by an internal power source such as a standard alkaline or lithium ion battery pack, or can be hardwired to the vehicle to direct power. Cigarette lighter adapter options are available for most models. The data from the tracking system can be manually downloaded to a computer via USB port or transmitted over a cellular network live, depending on whether the device is a passive or real-time tracking system.

Passive Tracking

Providing a cost-effective approach to vehicle tracking, passive devices allow users to monitor assets without having to pay a monthly fee. Since passive devices do not transmit data and only receive GPS coordinates, second-by-second tracking features are common. When the user wants to review the recorded data they simply remove the GPS tracking system from the vehicle and manually download the data via USB port.

Real-Time Tracking

For consumers needing to monitor a vehicle while in transit a real-time tracking system is the only solution. Login to a secured website, enter a user identification and password, and then access the GPS tracking data from home, office or smart phone. The vehicle tracking data is easily accessed and recorded to secure servers for future access.

Why is Vehicle Tracking the Solution for Me?

Whether you’re a large or small business, law enforcement agency, concerned parent of a teenager, or simply need a GPS tracking system for personal tracking, theft recovery, or family member with a physical or mental disability, the assurance vehicle tracking technology provides is priceless. GPS tracking systems allow users to easily and accurately access data that can increase productivity, help in routing, and supply answers to the unknown.

Real-time Tracking Systems Allow Fans to Watch from Home

Vehicle Tracking — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:49:19 +0000

Real-time tracking

The International Sailing Federation’s Danish members have purchased 150 real-time tracking systems so fans can view sailboat races online from the comfort of their own home by accessing the GPS tracking system information. The International Sailing Federation consists of approximately 126 countries across the world and it is very possible that many of the other member nations will implement GPS tracking systems on their sailboats or yachts, depending on the success of the Danish members.

The International Sailing Federation began in Paris in the early part of the twentieth century with the vision of creating an excitement around sailing to make as many people as possible take up the hobby/sport. Real-time tracking systems are just another way for the International Sailing Federation to try and increase sailing’s popularity.

Vehicle-tracking

Although vehicle tracking and GPS tracking systems are commonly used in automobiles, real-time GPS tracking systems are now becoming more popular with other forms of transportation such as airplanes and watercraft. Placing the real-time tracking systems into the sailboats will hopefully bring a new audience and more fans to the centuries old past time of sailing. When asked about equipping potentially 150 boats with real-time tracking systems, the Danish expressed a desire to allow sailing fans the unique opportunity to watch the races from any location online via GPS tracking technology. GPS tracking can only help sailing.

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Spy Gadgets – Used to Increase Celebrity?

Vehicle Tracking — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:43:27 +0000

More and more celebrities and people wanting to become celebrities are doing whatever possible to get publicity or sustain existing publicity. Sex tapes, rehab stints, and DUIs have all become common strategies for the Hollywood young to bridge the gap from reality show contestant or C list star to A list material. However, spy gadgets and surveillance equipment being used as a tool to make that transition is new territory, but that is what is rumored to have been the tactic ESPN sportscaster Erin Andrews may have chosen.

Recently, a video has surfaced on the Internet that shows Ms. Andrews in a provocative manner. The surveillance video is not of high quality and appears to be taken by a hidden camera or some other form of surveillance equipment. The surveillance type hidden camera recorded Ms. Andrews in her hotel room bathroom preparing her hair, make-up etc. The hidden surveillance camera essentially recorded her doing what appears to be a standard morning routine, however, what makes the video intriguing to people is that the surveillance camera captured all of this while she was partially nude.

Spy gadgets have always been popular with people interested in new technological innovations, but never has a spy gadget been used to increase celebrity. Because of Ms. Andrews’s initial reactions to the surveillance video leak and how the video portrayed her in a very flattering view, rumors are now swirling that the hidden camera video was taken by Ms. Andrews herself or her associates. Ms. Andrews has stated publicly that the spy gadgets that recorded her in the nude were placed by an outsider and not from her internal group.

We may never know the truth behind this highly publicized story regarding hidden cameras and surveillance equipment, but one thing is certain that hidden camera incident has pushed Ms. Andrews more into the spotlight. People will always try to achieve fame in any possible way and this could potentially be another unusual form of that. Spy gadgets that were once only used by law enforcement or tech-savvy individuals have become so user-friendly and cost-effective that anyone could use the surveillance devices. There is no doubt that these spy gadgets will continue to grow in popularity and more stories like this may surface in the future.