Number Plates Are The Weak Link In Law Enforcement
Police forces across the u.k. are realising that automatic number plates cameras can be of great assistance in their fight against all crime. Not only can the be used to enforce motoring crimes but they also have the added benefit of detecting and even preventing the use of vehicles during or in the travel to and from crimes. However there is a weakness in the system and that is the low tech and low security of present number plates, although legislation governing the supply and purchase of number plates has been changed over the last 8 years it can still be possible to buy number plates for a registration number for which the criminal has no entitlement. Worse still is the ease in which a criminal can remove the number plates from another car and attach them to the vehicle which is about to be used in illegal activity. Although the plates can be secured to the vehicle using tamper proof screws and in many cases the police will issue these free of charge, these schemes are all voluntary. Until the number plates are changed so that they self-destruct on attempted removal there will be this loophole which will reduce the effectiveness of the new cameras.