It can be difficult to trace the owner of stolen hot products. Since 2003, Immobilise, a product registration system supported by the National Mobile Phone Crime Unit, has been operating a secure database system that allows anyone to protect their property by registering online any valuables that have a unique serial number.
More than 22 million items, from mobile phones to antique jewellery, have been registered with Immobilise, which works with police forces and the second-hand trade to match details held on Immobilise with unique serial numbers found on recovered stolen products, or on products marketed for sale second hand. But it’s not
compulsory, it’s not automatically linked to lists of stolen items reported to the police and it doesn’t have the power to disable electronic goods via their International
Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number. To do that, you have to contact your network. It also doesn’t share information with companies selling high value products
that are potential targets of crime.
Immobilise is designed to increase personal responsibility for valuable property. It’s an online system so it is easy for most people who buy valuable products to access. Registration of these goods has been promoted by retailers like Carphone Warehouse, which has been involved in the service since it started. The ultimate aim is to get customers to register all products that have a unique ID number the minute
they buy them; the more people who register, the easier it will be to check recovered stolen products, and the more people will get their stolen items back.
Another system designed to reduce crime is TV Licensing’s dealer notification system. Since 1967 it has been compulsory for any company selling or renting TVs to give TV Licensing their customers’ names and addresses. While TV dealers are required by law to provide details of their customers’ names and addresses to help stopTV Licence evasion, Immobilise relies on individuals to register their own product details to lessen some of the impact of crimes like theft.
What do you think?
Could legislation help Immobilise, and systems like it, benefit from the automatic sharing of transactional information like TV Licensing does? Or could design help make systems that encourage a culture of action against theft?
