Nervous that there might be someone following you? Here are five ways to spot sneaky GPS trackers in your car.
5 things that make you a target online
Too many people share just about everything online. That’s a one-way ticket to Scamtown. Some info makes you an especially prime target. Keep these close to the vest.
1. Your relationship status
Widows and widowers are big targets. Crooks want to get their grimy hands on inheritance money. Take Rosalie Douglass, who tried her hand at online dating and listed “widow” as her relationship status. Two different scammers connected with Rosalie and swindled her out of a staggering $430,000.
Pro tip: If you’re a widow or widower, keep it off your dating and social media apps. You never know who’s watching.
2. Your vacation plans
Tiffany posted about her family’s upcoming Carnival cruise on Facebook by sharing shots of her tickets. She didn’t think about the fact her booking reference number was included. The same day, a scammer created a new Carnival account using Tiffany’s confirmation number. They canceled her booking and ruined her $15,000 trip.
Pro tip: Announcing your vacation plans before or during your trip screams “Rob me!” Take tons of pics on your vacation, but don’t share them until you’re home.
3. Videos of you talking
AI tools make it cheap and easy for anyone to create a deepfake video. Recently, on TikTok, a woman named Sam said a shady brand stole her face and used it to promote their product. They did it all with a video from her social media account and some deepfake software.
Pro tip: Limit the personal information you share online, especially high-quality photos and videos of you talking. For most folks, setting your social media accounts to “private” is the way to go.
4. Expensive electronics you’re selling
A South Carolina man listed a limited-edition PlayStation on a Facebook buy-sell-trade group. The “buyer” he met up with pulled out a gun and made off with the PlayStation, plus the man’s phone, wallet and watch. Scary.
Put your phone away - The best standalone GPS trackers for your car
Getting stuck in the middle of nowhere is a nightmare, and even thinking about it sends a surge of anxiety through your head. What if you get stuck, and nobody knows where you are? Tap or click here for three map apps better than Google if you have multiple stops.
You’re hitting the road and your phone battery is low: Rats. Set the route in your GPS app before you leave, then switch your phone into Airplane mode. You’ll still follow your route thanks to your phone’s built-in GPS, but you’ll save battery life by cutting off data-hungry apps. Smart.
Where to find hidden trackers in your car
Feel like you’re being followed? Here’s where to search for AirTags, Tiles, or any other GPS trackers on your vehicle.
We rely on GPS satellites to help us figure out exactly where we are. How many of them are orbiting Earth right now? Is it … A.) Four, B.) 15, C.) 24 or D.) 31?
20 drivers stranded
When GPS directions led them to a snowy, unpaved road. Drivers were trying to avoid traffic on an Oregon interstate. It took hours for rescuers to clear a path. Always double-check your GPS directions. I changed my GPS so instead of hearing, “You have reached your destination,” it says, “Whoomp, there it is!”
One trick to access Google Maps or Apple Maps even when you don’t have cell service
Remember picking up roadmaps at the gas station and keeping a stash in the glove compartment? Those days are behind us, thanks to all the ways to get GPS in our cars. Some vehicles come with the software, but you can always add a device even if yours doesn’t. Or you can use your phone.
How to modernize your old car to make it safer and easier to drive
A shortage of semiconductors and other supply chain issues have driven down the pool of new cars. This, of course, has caused prices to soar. People are turning to the used car market to score a better deal.
Crooks know how to take advantage of these situations, and they’re targeting used car shoppers with elaborate schemes. Tap or click here for tips on spotting used car scams.
A hush-hush economy: When you agree to an app’s terms and conditions, you’re agreeing to be tracked — so says the Secret Service (great read, but it’s a paywall link). They used a data-broker company’s tool called Locate X to follow people over time through the apps they’d given GPS access to — no warrant needed or required. Now you know what you’re really doing when you agree to those permissions.
📍 Secret Service agents spilling secrets: How? By using the GPS fitness app Strava, which is more like a social media site. Sure, agents can’t use their personal devices while on duty, but it’s OK off the clock. Agents’ Strava profiles gave away the locations of President Biden and his wife, former President Trump and his wife, and Vice President Harris. If you use Strava, set your privacy to the “Only You” setting. You’d think that the Secret Service’s top brass would’ve known about this. FWIW, I’ve been warning about this app for years.
60 miles
Swimming in the wrong direction. A long-distance swimmer attempting 80 miles across Lake Michigan had to call it quits after his GPS watch died and he got way off course. Stinks it ended this way for 60-year-old Jim Dryer, aka “The Shark.”
4-hour driving detour
Suggested by Google Maps to “avoid turns.” A driver shared the wacky alternative road trip route on X. The comments are a goldmine if you need a laugh. Be smarter than your GPS, people.
🏎️ Ferrari’s future won’t include GPS: But it will include a $500,000 EV. The luxury automaker is ditching built-in nav systems because, uh, our phones are way better. And start saving now; its half-a-million-dollar electric model is launching next year.
🛠️ This is not a drill: After thieves stole his construction tools, a Virginia man turned the tables, installing a GPS system on his stuff. The next time crooks struck, they led him right to a storage unit. The police found over 15,000 stolen items in the unit, totaling over $3 million — and from other victims, too! What a hero.
Solar storm tech issues: There weren’t too many disruptions from the recent global light show, but Starlink’s satellites had a few glitches. Interestingly, GPS navigation systems used by John Deere tractors and other brands to create ultra-tight, straight lines for planting were knocked out — and during a peak planting season. I was so bummed I saw nothing in the skies over Phoenix.
We rely on GPS satellites to help us figure out exactly where we are. How many of them are orbiting Earth right now? Is it … A.) Four, B.) 15, C.) 24 or D.) 31?