OT: Show your plate or not?

[artguy]

A friend recently mentioned they didn’t want their license plate shown in a photograph for fear some “nut-job” might be able to do something with it. I’ve never heard of any problems…maybe I’ve just been fortunate.

Question: What can a “nut-job” actually do with your plate number if they see it in a picture?

Please post some thoughts to help us decide whether or not we should show our plate or not.
(don’t give any specific technical details. We don’t want to give anyone any ideas)

[Ross]

In Illinois where I live the Secretary of State's office who is responsible for vehicle registation will divulge owner info on written request.
Some auto industry assns. also have (had) access to vehicle registration info.
What can a nut job do is up to his own imagination. Here's a story; A friend of a friend who had an "altercation" with another driver called a contact with the auto trade assn. from his cell phone and obtained the other drivers info.
With that he obtained a home phone number. Calling the house and asking for Joe or whomever, he was informed that Joe was (obviously) not in. Joe's wife suggested calling him on his cell phone and provided the number.
Dick(aptly named)the friend of a friend called Joe on his cell phone and threatened him with bodily harm while driving behind him. I suspect Joe was at the very least surprised.

[leicesterboy15]

Not sure about Nut Jobs but here in the UK car cloning is becoming more of a problem. You basically find a car of the same model and colour etc as yours, make a copy of it's plates and put them on your car. Hey presto - fine free motoring! Caught speeding on a camera? Not me! Jumped a red light? No sir! Parking ticket? not likely!

All fines go to the genuine owner. You can't fart in public over here without being fined for it and as for driving, forget it. Someone go fined for eating a snickers at the wheel!

Car cloning is on the up because the punishment is likely to be more lenient than if you get caught speeding and you are less likely to get caught as long as the nice owner of the car you've cloned very thoughtfully keeps his tax, insurance and MOT up to date!

Just another trick for the criminal fraternity, only its becoming more mainstream now as the big brother state is getting ridiculous..


Dick(aptly named)the friend of a friend called Joe on his cell phone and threatened him with bodily harm while driving behind him. I suspect Joe was at the very least surprised.

Just on that point above...if Joe had used cloned plates then Dick would be hovering up someone else's behind... :)

[Omega]

Question: What can a “nut-job” actually do with your plate number if they see it in a picture?

No more and no less than what they can do if they see it on the car driving past them..... The only way to stop people finding your details is to de-tag the car!

Obviously the "danger", perceived or otherwise is that posting your plate on the interweb opens the possible abuse of your personal details up to a much larger audience than merely driving your vehicle.


leicesterboy15 in addition if Dick were also driving on false plates the Gestapo would send his fine and 6 points for using a mobile while driving to the real owner... :p

BTW car cloning is on the up because there are so many fines and restrictions levelled at the regular motorist. The crime that has seem the largest increase in the past 18 months is "theft of numberplates". That is someone actually removing the plates from your car and usiong them on another vehicle. They don't clone them so much as remanufacture of number plates is difficult without the V5 details. If you can't make a copy, steal the original!

ArtGuy your signature just gets better and better. I love the new look.

[leicesterboy15]

Omega, all true! But if you steal someones plates you risk giving the game away, if you clone them the original owner can only guess...and even then its usually too late.

I know you are not supposed to be able to get a number plate made without a V5 but a recent documentary managed to do it at loads of places without being asked anything. And you can buy them online from a number of places (just search ebay!). They get around the rules by being registered in another country.


BTW car cloning is on the up because there are so many fines and restrictions levelled at the regular motorist.

Hear here - regular motorists always get in the neck..

[repenttokyo]

thousands of drivers see my plate every day on the highway, so it doesn't really matter to me whether it's in a picture or not.

[Ferret]

Omega, all true! But if you steal someones plates you risk giving the game away, if you clone them the original owner can only guess...and even then its usually too late.

I know you are not supposed to be able to get a number plate made without a V5 but a recent documentary managed to do it at loads of places without being asked anything. And you can buy them online from a number of places (just search ebay!). They get around the rules by being registered in another country.



Hear here - regular motorists always get in the neck..

Next door neighbour's had his plates nicked 4 different times so far - only stopped when he swapped on a nicked pair out of a scrap yard of a completely different make of car and then they got pinched!

B*stards stealing the plates must have got in trouble for that one, as reading is full of ANPR cameras, and a car with a plate declared as scrapped would get nabbed in about 40 seconds.

[Omega]

Next door neighbour's had his plates nicked 4 different times so far - only stopped when he swapped on a nicked pair out of a scrap yard of a completely different make of car and then they got pinched!


:D I love the idea of that!

We are "lucky" in that there aren't than many ANPR cameras in the north West, however when parking in Liverpool you are lucky to return to a car at all, let alone one with the plates removed. :p


leicesterboy15 If you know the right people you can get legit plates (well, real "fake" plates..) in this counrty as well.

In addition despite the new MOT regulations I know several people who have telephone-tickets, that is the car never went anywhere near a garage for testing, but it went through the book and has a legit MOT.

It seems the more laws there are, the more the ordinary person gets screwed and the more the criminal fraternity get away with. It's becoming a thinner and thinner line dividing the two.

[attack eagle]

1:
doesn't bother me, and
2: if it really did bother me, I have 3 different rear plates I could put on for picture taking purposes... Looks far less gay than someone Pshopping a line on the plate.

[Ferret]

In addition despite the new MOT regulations I know several people who have telephone-tickets, that is the car never went anywhere near a garage for testing, but it went through the book and has a legit MOT.

Damn, I need to find someone down here that'll do that :(

Moved from manchester a while back where the garage round the corner would do a £50 mot for you... shame it costs nearly that now anyway!

[leicesterboy15]

I didn't think you could still get dodgy MOTs after they've gone digital? I suppose as the process gets cleverer so do the crooks!

I needed a 'telephone-ticket' once for a producer (in my younger skint student days, wouldn't do it now). I was in Sheffield and I had to go to Bradford for a ticket from a garage in Halifax - and it was cheaper than a real one would have cost me!

[Omega]

I didn't think you could still get dodgy MOTs after they've gone digital? I suppose as the process gets cleverer so do the crooks!


As long as the car is booked into the MOT system and all the information is input correctly whether the car is there or not is immaterial. I was with a *friend* when he did the MoT over the phone so I know it can be done.

After all if something relies on human input, fraud is always a possibility. There are some garages that have a "stand in" should a car that is actually being tested fail on emissions. "Yeah mate, tweaked the emissions. That's an extra £50-..."

Before the ANPR and other clever electronic stuff became more available, I knew a printer who could get all the paperwork required for a 7-day-wonder freshly printed and through your door in under 3 days.......

[Ferret]

I didn't think you could still get dodgy MOTs after they've gone digital? I suppose as the process gets cleverer so do the crooks!

I needed a 'telephone-ticket' once for a producer (in my younger skint student days, wouldn't do it now). I was in Sheffield and I had to go to Bradford for a ticket from a garage in Halifax - and it was cheaper than a real one would have cost me!

Yeah, you can still get telephone tickets, the garage just has to be clever about it!

They need your vin/reg etc details - they punch them into their computer, go have a cuppa for 40 minutes and then come back and stick the computers emissions tester up someone elses car exhaust. Meanwhile they're ticking all the boxes that go 'yes we've tested that and it's good'

Checking a car in, then out again in 10 minutes is gonna get a garage in trouble though lol...

[winfred]

well i don't have a picture of my 6 with a plate on it yet as i only just titled it yesterday but it's RBR 330 and heres my truck
http://members.cox.net/kitlou/dualls2.JPG
if anyone wants a gay line p-shopped through it they will need to do it themselves :D

[RallyD]

who cares. hundreds of people see my plate every day.

[whiskychaser]

We are "lucky" in that there aren't than many ANPR cameras in the north

Lancashire has most cameras of any county. Its was on TV the other night or I wouldnt have believed it. But if you have nicked the car are you bothered about a speed camera? Its those who pay their council tax, insurance etc who get it in the neck. Simple - cos they pay up. By the way, Tony from the Bill drives a BM. Wonder if he logs on here? Better not say where the dodgy MOTs come from :)

[Bin_jammin]

In Illinois where I live the Secretary of State's office who is responsible for vehicle registation will divulge owner info on written request.
Some auto industry assns. also have (had) access to vehicle registration info.
What can a nut job do is up to his own imagination. Here's a story; A friend of a friend who had an "altercation" with another driver called a contact with the auto trade assn. from his cell phone and obtained the other drivers info.
With that he obtained a home phone number. Calling the house and asking for Joe or whomever, he was informed that Joe was (obviously) not in. Joe's wife suggested calling him on his cell phone and provided the number.
Dick(aptly named)the friend of a friend called Joe on his cell phone and threatened him with bodily harm while driving behind him. I suspect Joe was at the very least surprised.


I did that once! (sorta) I got stuck for miles behind some bastard in a 4Runner that wouldn't get out of the way, but any time passing room opened up he'd cut me off and drive slow. Pretty obvious he was doing it on purpose. The best part was that he was selling the truck, and had a for sale sign in the window. I called him up and asked about the truck, talked to him for probably 5 minutes.

"I only have one more question for you, if you don't mind. I really like how the truck sounds, but if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'm the guy in the small grey car that's been trying to pass you for about 12 miles, do you think you could do me a favor and either speed up or get the **** out of the way? It's really annoying the way you keep cutting me off, and I don't know why you're in such a hurry to drive slowly. Thanks for putting the phone number on the side of the truck though, that was a big help."

Well... I timed it perfectly, when he spun his head around to look at me with the phone glued to the side of his head I had just enough room to make the pass. Needless to say he was making love to his horn, and not in a gentle way. Even tried to run me off the road, but I wasn't having it. The best he could do was keep calling me back to scream at me. We need some way to be able to contact drivers while they're on the road like that. He was some foreigner screaming things at me about being white...

Eh... angry behind me is better than smug in front of me.

[e34.535i.sport]

Hey there, a NUT JOB cloned my dad's plates and he recieved a parking fine through the post from London! (xxxmiles away!!). Luckily he could prove where he was at the time... His pug 406 has near 300,000 miles on the clock, it wouldn't even make it to London!!!!

[Barney Paull-Edwards]

Having a brother in LA with 28 points on his licence and an E34 in UK does it for me!

[artguy]

28 points ?!?!?!?!?!?! Wow!

Is he even allowed to WALK down the street anymore?

In Michigan your license is gone after 12 points and you would have tons of "Driver Responsibility Fees" equalling thousands of $.


Having a brother in LA with 28 points on his licence and an E34 in UK does it for me!

[Barney Paull-Edwards]

Better not say more, work it out!

[Ferret]

Better not say more, work it out!

HA!

[Omega]

http://members.cox.net/kitlou/dualls2.JPG


I just ran that plate through the DMV and you know what it says?

Who the **** is Winfred?

Looks like you're safe for the moment. :D

[Omega]

Having a brother in LA with 28 points on his licence and an E34 in UK does it for me!

So he "lost" one license and got a replacement. Then had the misfortune to then leave the new license in his jeans when his wife "washed" them and had a second replacement license issued. Hows that? I like his style... ;)



Lancashire has most cameras of any county.


Yeah, I saw that too, but I live in Cheshire. The Police here actually have better things to do with their time than clean speed cameras.

[Ferret]

28 points ?!?!?!?!?!?! Wow!

Is he even allowed to WALK down the street anymore?

In Michigan your license is gone after 12 points and you would have tons of "Driver Responsibility Fees" equalling thousands of $.

UK is the same, nearly...

12 points doesnt automatically equal a ban, just that you're liable to be banned by the courts if they choose to do so. More often than not they choose the ban option...

I do have a friend who's still driving around with 13 points on his license, but the court let him off a ban as he's the only transport his ill mother has! (Or so he told the court.)

Gets shafted by insurance companies though...

[Bin_jammin]

Yeah, I saw that too, but I live in Cheshire. The Police here actually have better things to do with their time than clean speed cameras.


Now that's funny. I live in Cheshire CT (USA) and it's a town with a lot of money, which means a lot of money for a police force that does nothing but hassle residents.

[Morgenster]

No need for cloning here. With newer EU regulations It's hard enough to find a Belgian plate in Antwerp. Lots of 'French', 'Dutch' and 'Polish' cars here.
Need to get cheap registration with no technical inspections. Just register the car in a country that's more lenient.
As for cloning the plates to a same type of car: I got pulled over twice because the police thought my car was stolen. Turns out there's a swedish black 5er with the same plate numbers that was stolen. They're a different color but the PO-PO still find it necessary to compare VINs just to be on the safe side. Looks like they're colorblind after all.