Many of us own a car today. Unfortunately, with more and more cars flooding our roads, the possibility of car thefts increases as well.

With that being said, it is very important that we take the necessary preventive measures so that we won't fall victims to car thieves.

What you can do?

Install anti-theft device

You will find it handy to acquire and install aftermarket anti-theft devices in your car. These devices can often be found at various car workshops.

Apart from providing your car with a higher security level, these aftermarket anti-theft devices are often pretty easy to install, meaning you won't have to spend any extra amount of money to get professionals to install them for you. One example of such devices is known as The Club, where it's secured around your steering wheel.

here are also other anti-theft devices you can find on the market. These devices include car alarms, immobilisers and GPS vehicle tracking systems

The Club

The Club, also known as a steering wheel lock, is a device that fits and locks onto your steering wheel. It secures your steering wheel in place, making it difficult for thieves to drive off with your car. However, this does not prevent them from breaking into your car, and some studies have also shown that The Club can be defeated with tools.

Car alarms

Possibly the most common anti-theft device out there, car alarms are now fitted to virtually every new car on sale right now.

In a basic sense, car alarms emit a loud noise to alert the owner or anyone else once it senses any attempt at unauthorised entry. They usually trigger when the doors or windows are opened without the presence of the accompanying alarm key fob; some systems trigger if they sense any unnatural movement in and around the car in the absence of the key.

However, the fact that car alarms are so commonplace has resulted in complacency, with people ignoring them due to the constant false alarms that are triggered due to various reasons.

Immobilisers

A more effective deterrent would be immobilisers. An immobiliser is an electric device that is wired to both the engine and the car's key, and prevents the car from starting or running if the correct key is not present.

The immobiliser device consists of a miniature transponder imbedded in the ignition key head, and an electronic key which sends out security codes that must be matched to the one generated by the car's Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in order for the car to start and run.

If an incorrect code is detected, the ignition and engine will not be able to start, thereby rendering any attempt at stealing the vehicle useless.


GPS vehicle tracking systems

Taking security further are GPS vehicle tracking systems. Should thieves somehow managed to break past your car alarm and disable your car's immobiliser, vehicle tracking systems are able to alert the owner as to the whereabouts of the vehicle, enabling him or the authorities to take action.

Vehicle tracking systems typically send data regularly about the car to either a computer or a data centre, which can be evaluated to determine the car's travelling pattern. So, any anomalies in that pattern would result in an alert to the owner in case of theft.

Law enforcement authorities also have access to this information once they are alerted, so that they can assist with tracking and recovery of the vehicle. More sophisticated systems can even perform a remote shutdown of the car if required, thereby stopping the car thief literally in his tracks.