Fake Amazon Boxes With GPS Help Police Catch Thieves

Porch thefts are a lot more common during the holiday season, which is why Amazon is now working alongside law enforcement. Police in a New Jersey city are now trying to catch thieves using fake Amazon boxes with GPS trackers attached to them.

Police in Jersey City are also using doorbell cameras provided by Amazon to catch thieves in the act of swiping packages left outside homes. The sting operation is being held in locations selected based on the city’s own crime statistics and a map of theft locations provided by Amazon. Police Capt. James Crecco said that with these tools, it didn’t take long for them to catch a criminal in the act.

“We had a box out on the street for three minutes before it was taken,” Crecco told the Associated Press. “We thought it was a mistake at first.” The police captain revealed that his mother was a victim of package theft, as well.

Amazon, the biggest online retailer in the U.S., is providing police the necessary equipment for this operation. Police are using bait packages with GPS that appear like real Amazon boxes. Surveillance cameras are also being used to provide authorities a still image of the culprits.

There are no exact numbers on how many Americans have experienced package theft, since Amazon, UPS and FedEx don’t disclose that type of information. However, a survey suggests that almost 26 million Americans have had a holiday package stolen from their homes.

Amazon didn’t answer any questions about its partnership with the police for this anti-theft program, but it did say that it appreciates the increased effort by local authorities to catch thieves. Amazon also said that it’s committed to providing assistance whenever possible.

The AP report indicated that similar anti-theft programs have been tried in other cities like Albuquerque, New Mexico and Hayward, California.

An Amazon delivery driver was also caught in Oregon recently for stealing a GPS-enabled package left by police. The culprit was found to have 18 Amazon boxes in his car awaiting delivery, according to The Oregonian.

Amazon has already tried tackling this problem with the launch of Amazon Key, as pointed out by The Verge. Amazon Key is a service where customers can pay for a cloud-connected locking system that grants delivery drivers permission to unlock the front door and quickly drop their packages inside their home. This prevents packages from being stolen when left outside, but it raises concerns over giving a complete stranger the ability to unlock people’s front doors.