Number Plates And Crime
The number plates fitted to vehicle are fast becoming the most important part of that vehicle as far as the police are concerned. When cars were being stolen and broken up or given another identity the industry started to mark the parts of the vehicle with VIN numbers which could be traced back to a particular vehicle. The VIN plate and the numbers stamped into the bodyshell and various other places was the key to identifying the vehicle. Nowadays the emphasis is on identifying the vehicle whilst it is being used for criminal purposes. The country is covered in cameras watching our moves and in particular the movements of vehicles. Many are used just for upholding the laws of motoring but many others are tracking the movements of vehicles which are of interest to the police and security forces. The achilles heel of this network of cameras is that they read, automatically, number plates and alert the operator of an interesting vehicle, but number plates are easily removed,covered up or switched with others. While the supply of plates has been regulated over recent years it is still possible to acquire the equipment to make up plates or at worst criminals can just remove them from another car.