Wednesday, November 13, 2013

GPS Tracking Helps Apprehend Armed Robbery Suspects

Staring down the barrel of a gun isn’t the way anyone wants to start the day. But for a 27-year old student at the University of Delaware in Newark, that’s exactly what happened early one Monday morning. While sitting outside his apartment, the student was accosted by two men demanding that he hand over his belongings. When he protested that he had nothing with him, the two men entered his apartment, took his cell phone and a purse that belonged to a friend who was inside, and left the scene. And that’s when the student’s cell phone GPS tracking device went to work.


GPS RobbersUnfortunately for the perpetrators, a cell phone GPS tracking device can pinpoint the exact location of the phone, making it easy for police officers to track it down. Less than an hour later, Newark police stopped a vehicle matching the description of the one that left the scene and discovered the cell phone and purse inside.


Just about every cell phone has a GPS tracking device installed, making it easy to find the phone if it gets lost or stolen. Most people won’t ever have the experience of being held at gunpoint, but the built in tracking device still might come in useful if the phone gets left in a taxi, dropped in a store, or lifted by a pickpocket. That’s why many cell phone owners download apps like Find My Phone, which allows you to view the phone’s location from a computer or tablet.


Using a cell phone as a tracking device comes in handy for keeping tabs on the people you love, too. You can track the location of a spouse, child, aging parent, or friend, ensuring that they are safe and where they said they would be. Apps like Find My Phone require the consent of the phone’s owner before allowing remote tracking, a measure that helps maintain security and privacy.


Hopefully you’ll never find yourself in the place of needing to track down a stolen phone, but if you do, GPS tracking will make the job a whole lot easier. By having the right information to give the police, you make it much more likely that your phone will be found and that the person responsible will be apprehended.



GPS Tracking Helps Apprehend Armed Robbery Suspects

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