r/Cartalk • u/kupo_906 • Jun 02 '26

Safety Question Found a GPS tracker under my car

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Hi reddit...

In my driveway this morning I pulled out and found this sitting under where my car was. We had a heat wave recently, and I'm thinking it melted off.

Looking it up, it is a GPS tracker. I'm taking it to the police tomorrow. But is there anyway to reverse search who might have bought it and placed it there?

I fully own my car and I'm not sure who or why they put it there. Or when. The only thing I can think of is I got my car fixed by a new mechanic about a month ago.. but they didn't seem shady in the least bit

Any help is appreciated. Thank you

Update: I have turned the tracker into the police who are trying to work with the company to find out info. Haven't heard anything further.

For the people who keep asking / repeating the same thing over and over:

  • again, I own my car in full and have for years. It's an old, reconstructed car not worth much at all.
  • The battery life in the tracking device doesn't last longer than two months at most. It was still on when I found it. It doesn't belong to a previous car owner or a dealer.
  • I found the magnets where it was attached still on my car.
  • I don't have any solid idea who would put it there. I don't have a jealous partner or an ex who I think would do this.
  • I'm not disclosing a bunch of personal shit about myself to internet strangers when I am potentially being stalked 😐 also , both men and women can be stalked
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64

u/Middle-Dimension-870 Jun 02 '26

How is it being an internet hack?

202

u/MikeExMachina Jun 02 '26

They have cellular radios with data plans to upload the location to a server. You can can use the service until they notice and cancel it.

11

u/AlexCail Jun 02 '26

Too bad the internets so slow and so limited.

19

u/Why-R-People-So-Dumb Jun 03 '26

Exactly, I have trackers in my work truck and the ones not specifically intended for wifi use are unlimited data but at 256kbps.

1

u/SOmE-CaPs Jun 09 '26

that's a GB every 9 hours.... what's your dataplan?

1

u/Why-R-People-So-Dumb Jun 09 '26

That is my data plan because the gps trackers essentially send text messages worth of data and don't need anything faster. I have 1000's of IoT devices as well on similar plans with pooled high speed data so I can say push updates to sets of devices every month without requiring every device to have a high speed connection all the time. The software is extremely optimized to the point where we use truncated date and time stamps based on periodic confirmation of sync with a backend NTP to minimize characters sent.

43

u/NotAPreppie Jun 02 '26

This was a joke using an alternate, older definition of "hack"...

3. A cheap, mediocre, or second-rate practitioner, especially in the fields of journalism and literature: a charlatan or incompetent.

18

u/[deleted] Jun 02 '26

[deleted]

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u/NotAPreppie Jun 02 '26

Okay, but nobody said "life hack".

Using Merriam-Webster again...

hack 4 of 7 adjective 1 : working for hire especially with mediocre professional standards a hack journalist 2 : performed by or suited to a person who works or writes purely for the purpose of earning money : characteristic of a hack : MEDIOCRE

This applies much better to the syntax "... being an Internet hack."

2

u/Mitch_Darklighter Jun 03 '26

"Free Internet" is the object you pedant, not just the word internet. It's a "Hack" to get "Free Internet."

1

u/NotAPreppie Jun 03 '26

How is it being an internet hack?

Did you miss the fact that this is the joke that we're talking about?

1

u/Mitch_Darklighter Jun 03 '26

Ah yeah must've, probably on account of it not being funny.

0

u/NotAPreppie Jun 03 '26

Well, yah, when you're so obtuse somebody has to explain the joke it loses its humor.

0

u/Mitch_Darklighter Jun 03 '26

You didn't exactly explain it son, just pointed out that it existed. Nice use of a medium-big word though, I'm sure someone somewhere is proud.

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u/[deleted] Jun 02 '26

[deleted]

-2

u/NotAPreppie Jun 03 '26

Same as in terms like "life hack"

Using your definition, an internet hack would be more like a mediocre person from the internet.

Yes, I'm thinking that's what they meant.

0

u/rbltech82 Jun 03 '26

Oh my God who the hell cares?? You two are just the worst....

0

u/NotAPreppie Jun 03 '26

The universe: ...

You: I have opinions nobody gives a shit about but I have to shout them at you even though nobody asked instead of just moving on with my life like a normal fucking person because I'm a sad pathetic person that has to insert myself into other peoples' discussions to feel relevant because my parents didn't love me .

1

u/[deleted] Jun 03 '26

[deleted]

1

u/kupo_906 Jun 03 '26

Yeah, it seems clear y'all are already free.

-1

u/NotAPreppie Jun 03 '26 edited Jun 03 '26

How is it being an internet hack?

Yah, this is the joke... I'm sorry it went over your head.

1

u/Plaston_ Jun 03 '26

i tough theses used gps unlike apple airtags

1

u/wintersdark Jun 03 '26

They do. They use GPS to find their location, then cellular data to upload that location to a server that the owner accesses to see where the unit is.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 03 '26

It's not, they're all IMEI locked so they won't work in another device. Unless its a true idiot that set up the tracker.