CANTON, Mass., July 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- As vehicle theft
continues to evolve and expand beyond traditional methods, LoJack
Corporation (NASDAQ: LOJN), a leader in vehicle theft recovery,
today introduced 'The Connected Vehicle Thief' Era to open National
Vehicle Theft Protection Month. According to a survey conducted by
Gallup, 42 percent of Americans frequently or occasionally fear
that their vehicle will be stolen or broken into. LoJack cautions
that the nature of vehicle theft has changed and one of the vehicle
owner's adversaries is a smarter, connected and more targeted
network of thieves.
"The FBI reports in its 2013 Uniform Crime Report that a vehicle
is stolen every 45.1 seconds in the
United States, which amounts to more than $4.1 billion in lost assets each year," said
Patrick Clancy, Vice President of
Law Enforcement, LoJack Corporation. "With only 54.8 percent* of
stolen vehicles being recovered, auto theft is still a serious
problem and we are now dealing with a more advanced, sophisticated
thief. These individuals are increasingly creative, connected and
dangerous in their approaches to steal your valuable assets."
"In recent years, the traditional methods, techniques and
mindset towards auto theft has evolved," Clancy continues.
"Although numbers show a decline in theft, the impact that today's
Connected Vehicle Thief has on the individuals and businesses that
fall victim to them is much greater. We rely on our vehicles for
much more than just transportation. Today, our vehicles hold
critical information such as our phone contacts, registration and
insurance details, even the address and directions to our home –
making entry, theft and further damage even more of a possibility.
Vehicles are truly an extension of our connected self and without
it, we are less productive and informed and risk becoming exposed
to the outside world."
With the emergence of new technology, LoJack cautions vehicle
owners against 'The Connected Vehicle Thief.' These thieves have
adapted techniques and methods to steal expensive, critical assets,
such as cars, fleet vehicles and commercial equipment by adhering
to key trends:
- Smart cars = Smarter thieves: Thieves have become more
advanced in their techniques, which includes: illegally acquiring
and copying smart keys, using GPS and manufactured keys to target
rental vehicles, using stolen credit reports and creating false
identities to finance vehicles at dealerships and VIN cloning.
- Go big, Go home, or Go overseas: Thieves have
placed a great emphasis on expensive vehicles. Whether it be a
brand new 2015 BMW X3 or a 1965 Ford Mustang, 'The Connected
Vehicle Thief' is targeting cars that are valuable on the open
market. Many of these thieves are taking and filling orders based
on black market demands. Thieves know they can get the most value
by targeting new, or rare, vehicles that are worth a substantial
amount of money when they are exported and shipped overseas. Often
times, new cars are stolen and placed in shipping containers or are
part of an elaborate, large international crime operation.
- The Connected Vehicle Thief Can Cost You Money and Your
Identity: In an increasingly connected-era, cars are more
important than ever before. According to LoJack's latest recovery
data, the average value of vehicles stolen and recovered is more
than $10,000**. In addition, vehicle
theft has a glaring impact on rising insurance rates – an added
cost to the vehicle owner. There's also a troubling link
between car theft and identity theft, as thieves not only take a
person's vehicle, but their identity when documents containing
personal information such as a vehicle registration or even bills
are left in a vehicle.
- The Impact on Commercial and Fleet Businesses: The
average value of vehicles stolen does not take into account the
significant costs associated with theft, including loss in job
productivity, critical data, transportation and overall
professional impact. For example:
- A small business owner has a generator stolen from a job site
and costs them time off a job and a substantial amount of money to
replace the equipment.
- The construction business owner who has a piece of heavy
equipment stolen, such as a front loader, can't complete a job on
time.
- The fleet owner who has a dump truck stolen can't complete a
job, or take on new work, without the vehicle.
"Auto theft is having a tremendous impact on our day-to-day
lives and these smarter, more advanced thieves can be extremely
dangerous," said Chris McDonald,
former president of the International Association of Auto Theft
Investigators and executive director with the Maryland Vehicle
Theft Prevention Council. "With advancements in technology, it is
much more difficult for thieves to gain access to the vehicle
without a smart key or key fob. As such, we are seeing an uptick in
home burglaries and violent crimes in order to gain access to the
vehicle. Although the numbers might say auto theft is declining, we
need to be more vigilant than ever before in order to protect our
assets, and more importantly ourselves, from this new breed of
smart and dangerous criminals."
Educational resources available to vehicle owners this July and
beyond include:
- 'LoDown With LoJack' – Auto Theft Trends video highlighting
auto theft trends from around the country and the importance of
vehicle security systems in combating today's sophisticated
thief.
- Tips from IAATI and LoJack for consumers to help protect and
keep their vehicle assets safe. By adhering to a multi-layered
theft prevention approach – which includes common sense approaches,
theft prevention and immobilization devices, and tracking/recovery
systems – consumers can better protect their vehicles from
theft.
- LoJack's Sixth Annual Vehicle Theft Recovery
Report, infographic and slideshow reviewing auto
theft trends over the past year specific to vehicles equipped with
the LoJack® Stolen Vehicle Recovery System.
For more information from LoJack and tips for how to keep your
valuable assets safe during National Vehicle Theft Protection
Month, please visit www.lojack.com.
*Source: 2013 FBI Uniform Crime Report
**Source: Used Car values are best estimates derived from:
NADA Guide web services values and clean retail value from
NADAGuides.com for the make, model and year of the vehicle in the
month that it was recovered.
About LoJack Corporation
LoJack Corporation, the
company that has helped more than nine million people protect their
vehicles in the event of theft over the past 25+ years, today
provides safety, security and protection for an ever-growing range
of valuable assets and people. Leveraging its core strengths,
including its well-known brand, direct integration with law
enforcement and dealer distribution network, LoJack Corporation is
expanding our business to include our traditional vehicle and
equipment theft recovery, people at risk and new telematics based
products and services. LoJack is delivering new telematics-based
solutions for on-road and off-road fleet management, as well as,
dealer inventory management. By expanding our brand beyond stolen
vehicle recovery, LoJack Corporation is committed to creating a new
level of value for its dealer, licensee, customer and investor
communities by delivering innovative offerings and multiple
technologies in expanding geographies.
For more information, visit www.lojack.com,
www.autotheftblog.com, www.youtube.com/lojack,
www.twitter.com/LoJackCorp or
www.Facebook.com/LoJackCorp.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Melissa
Latham
Matter
Communications
978-518-4523
lojack@matternow.com
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080512/NEM054LOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lojack-announces-a-new-era-in-vehicle-theft-300107562.html
SOURCE LoJack Corporation