NikonGear'23
Gear Talk => What the Nerds Do => Topic started by: David H. Hartman on March 22, 2023, 22:52:03
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Many devices emit RF even when turned off. This includes cameras, laptop and tablets, smart phones and probably GPS devices.
A CNN crew was the victim of a smash and grab car theft while the were eating in a restaurant. They were in a high crime area of San Fransisco, CA. They were apparently from out of town and ironically they were there to report on rising crime in the city. They lost not only laptop computers but likely valuable data as well. I'm not providing a link to the article because the site carries information of a political nature. Search of you like.
The thieves detect RF transmissions from cameras and high tech devices out of sight and in the trunk of your car or behind the seat of a pickup truck. The rear window of passenger cars can easily be broken without special tools and will fall away in relatively harmless cubes. The back of the rear seat can be lowered and items grabbed quickly. The side windows of cars and trucks can be broken in a similar manner with small portable tools designed for emergency rescue. A simple lever to open a locked trunk is available in many cars giving rapid access to the trunk.
I suggest using an Airplane Mode if available. For example my Nikon D850 will communicate with my cell phone even when turned off. Laptop computers should be turned off. Some tablets will communicate with cell tower even when turned off.
I also suggest placing valuables in the trunk of your car before you reach the location where you will park. Many years ago I left my father's camera in the locked glove box of my car. Within 10 minutes the camera was stolen. I'm quite sure the thief saw me place the camera in the glove box and lock it.
Please take what precautions you can to protect your valuable tech devices and in the case of Computer please back up your data.
Best,
Dave Hartman
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Or some kind of RF-proof storage box either in the trunk or footwell?
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The back of the rear seat can be lowered and items grabbed quickly. The side windows of cars and trucks can be broken in a similar manner with small portable tools designed for emergency rescue. A simple lever to open a locked trunk is available in many cars giving rapid access to the trunk.
The enclosed trunk (boot) of a sedan (saloon) is very secure. If the rear seat can be lowered then the release levers are in the trunk. The convenient lever or button that allows the driver to open the trunk works electronically and power is not retained for long after the car is locked. I learned that years ago when I absent-mindedly locked my car key in the trunk after locking my car.
Don't ask :-[
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You will probably find that your insurance is void unless the items were locked in the boot / trunk of a saloon car - I have had things stolen from the back of a locked estate car and they were NOT covered. This is the reason I don't even bother locking the doors of my soft top car - I would rather they open the door than slash the hood / top.
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You will probably find that your insurance is void unless the items were locked in the boot / trunk of a saloon car - I have had things stolen from the back of a locked estate car and they were NOT covered. This is the reason I don't even bother locking the doors of my soft top car - I would rather they open the door than slash the hood / top.
As the saying goes, over here across the pond in the U.S. we're separated from the U.K. by our common language. ;)
For the comfort and convenience of our American readers:
British saloon car = American sedan https://jalopnik.com/this-is-why-we-call-cars-sedans-limousines-and-saloon-1825025822 (https://jalopnik.com/this-is-why-we-call-cars-sedans-limousines-and-saloon-1825025822)
British estate car = American wagon or station wagon
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Lol - we have SUVs, trucks, vans, roadsters, coupes, lorries, artics, rigids and many more varieties of four (or more) wheeled vehicles too!
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Oh, and:
Bonnet = Hood and
Boot = Trunk and
Mudguard = fender etc etc
On the other hand, adjectives applied to other clowns, turkeys, dickheads, fools, etc etc etc that one encounters on the road are the same!
;D ;D ;D
As the saying goes, over here across the pond in the U.S. we're separated from the U.K. by our common language. ;)
For the comfort and convenience of our American readers:
British saloon car = American sedan https://jalopnik.com/this-is-why-we-call-cars-sedans-limousines-and-saloon-1825025822 (https://jalopnik.com/this-is-why-we-call-cars-sedans-limousines-and-saloon-1825025822)
British estate car = American wagon or station wagon
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I suggest using an Airplane Mode if available. For example my Nikon D850 will communicate with my cell phone even when turned off. Laptop computers should be turned off. Some tablets will communicate with cell tower even when turned off.
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Dave Hartman
Better yet, turn off or hybernate your notebook, and remove the battery, do the same (when possible, most Apple products -like iPads- don't allow you to do it) with tablets, cameras and cellphones. Only way to make sure no RF is emitted: the RF emitted by the small battery that keeps the internal clocks running is undetectable. Specialized (specialised) probes for detecting if a place is bugged will detect even that, but you have to be FBI, CIA or the Mafia to have such equipment...
Ciao from Massimo