F Y I
1. LONG-TERM PARKING
Some people left their car in the long-term parking at Sydney Airport while away,
and someone broke into the car. Using the information on the car's registration in the glove compartment, they drove the car to the people's home in Windsor and robbed it. So I guess if we are going to leave the car in long-term parking, we should NOT leave
our registration/insurance cards in it, nor the remote garage door opener. This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.
2. GPS:
Someone had their car broken into while they were at a hockey game. Their car was
parked on the green which was adjacent to the arena and specially allotted to hockey 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 "home" setting 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 hockey 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. 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.
3. MOBILE PHONES:
I never thought of this! This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists names on her mobile phone after her handbag was
stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet, etc., was stolen. Twenty 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
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 When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn.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. Within 20 minutes
he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.
Moral of this story
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby,
Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc.
b. And, very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.
c. Also, when you're being texted 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.
4. PURSE IN THE GROCERY CART SCAM:
A lady went grocery-shopping at a local mall and left her purse sitting in the child seat of the cart while she reached something
off a shelf. Wait till you read the WHOLE story! Her wallet was stolen, and she reported it to the store personnel. After returning home, she received a phone call from the Mall Security to say that they had her wallet and that although there was no money
in it, it did still hold her personal papers. She immediately went to pick up her wallet, only to be told by Mall Security that they had not called her. By the time she returned home again, her house had been broken into and burgled. The thieves knew that
by calling and saying they were Mall Security, they could lure her out of her house long enough for them to burgle it.
PASS THIS ON
Even if this does not pertain to you, let others know so
they don't get caught in a scam.
Eagle Wing Motorcycle Association
Ocala, Florida