Protect Your Property / DNA kits

[Melensdad]

Hey guys, what do you think of this? Use your DNA to identify your goods!

There are two varieties; one for automotive use and the other for “personal” use. So far Lexus has signed on to use the product on most all of their vehicles from the factory and some universities are selling the personal DNA kits in their bookstores. CSI Miami, CSI NY, and CSI Vegas actually paid the company to use their product in their shows. One of the producer’s kids bought a kit at a university book store and it went from there. What do you think about it? Once people buy a kit, they go to http://www.datadotusa.com to register their DNA number in the international database.

Check out the website: http://www.idconceptsllc.com/

 

[Melensdad]

OH COME ON . . . nobody has any thoughts on this? You identify your property with your own DNA!

Doesn't this appeal to anyone?

If it doesn't appeal to you, then who do you think would buy it?

What does Lexus know (about their customers) that they find this attractive?

 

[Dargo]

I for one think it's an absolutely fantastic idea!! That guy on the CSI Miami clip mentioned that he had the DataDots on his property for insurance. Hmm, I need to check with my homeowner's insurance company and see what they think. For a business, I think it makes the old "inventory tags" (or stickers) obsolete. My wife used to work for Bristol Myers and everything in their offices worth more than a stapler had one of their numbered inventory stickers on it. I didn't really see the point of that when anyone could just peel the sticker right off.

I'm going to put them on my personal items at home as well as on my cars, tractors, motorcycles, tractors, mowers, power equipment, and power tools. That way, if my stuff is ever stolen and shows up in a pawn shop, I can prove it is mine. Better yet, the police may find it first and return it to me. They are constantly going through our local pawn shops looking for stolen merchandise.

 

[Melensdad]

OK so here is what I have found out.

At a pawn shop, the police around here have just been using a black light flashlight to look around at stuff in pawn shops and on the shelves of recycled auto parts places. When you have something stolen, part of what you do is to report it to the police and to report that you have DataDots and where you put them.

State police departments now are aware of them, the U.S. Customs know about them, and now literally hundreds of city police departments. Also, since there is about 1000 dots in a single kit, there is safety in numbers so to speak. Not only are they very hard to scrape off, but there will be lots and lots of them on something.

The U.S. is one of the last 1st world countries to start using DataDots. They may have started in Australia? Apparently they are in the UK and EU? Villi, Mith, IceQueen, Tommo . . . have you seen these things?

The dots are held down with fluorescing glue that is next to impossible to remove. The CSI program exposure has actually gotten several police departments to use them for their own inventory tracking. They have a “sportsman version” for guns and gear that has a different adhesive yet. They are coming with a smaller version of the dots for jewelry. These dots would be too big for jewelry, but these can be read with a 30X magnifying glass. For jewelry, they may be comeing out with ¼ the size of current dots.

This is interesting stuff, but I'm not sold on it. I guess it is no surprise that Dargo already has it, he has everything about a month before I figure out I need it!

What do you guys think? Anyone going to put this stuff on their cars? Tractors? Guns? Computers?

Or is anyone even interested in this? It is for sale on Ebay. (BTW, I have no interest in the company or the sale of the item!)

 

[DaveNay]

OH COME ON . . . nobody has any thoughts on this? You identify your property with your own DNA!

It's quite common for me to mark my property with my DNA. Sometimes it just too inconvenient to make it back to the house.

As far as the subject, I think it looks like a great idea. with regards to identifying and inventorying our personal property, we are woefully lacking.

 

[Melensdad]

As far as the subject, I think it looks like a great idea. with regards to identifying and inventorying our personal property, we are woefully lacking.

So are you going to spend the $ to get something like this? Or do you have a better alternative? What about old concept of photographing everything and marking down serial numbers?

I still question jewelry for this. A fine watch can easily cost several thousand dollars or more, but where would you hide the dot? And why not just use the serial number of the watch instead of the dot?

Diamonds can be micro engraved with a number (like your social security number) that need to be viewed with high magnification. Not sure you'd want to glue a dot to a diamond?

I suppose stereo equipment, cellphones, cameras, etc all are great options, but then again don't each of those have serial numbers too? I suppose I don't have the serial numbers written down for most things, so maybe the whole concept of the "dots" is just easy. Use the special glue, 'dot' everything worth anything, and you only need to report 1 serial number to the police. I suppose it is a lot easier to use 'dots'

 

[daedong]

[FONT=&quot]Bob, I think it is a brilliant concept, it will certainly slow car theft down, which is a big problem here.
[/FONT]

 

[Melensdad]

Vin, supposedly it was invented in Australia? Have you heard of this product? Is is used widely there?

 

[daedong]

[FONT=&quot]Bob
I think that is right that it was invented here, like so many things invented in Australia they don’t really take off until they become commercially developed in the US or Japan. Having said that I do believe that the Auto industry uses it but I don’t know to what extent.[/FONT]

 

[Melensdad]

Well I just got my little DATA DOTS property protection kit.

If one of you folks want to come steal my Snow Trac coffee mug we can find out how well this stuff works!

The kit comes with a small canister of digital "DNA" that has my assigned "DNA" code number. An applicator. Stickers & Instructions.

It actually looks pretty interesting and I see no reason why it would not be a good theft deterrant if people know it is being used. The key is to make sure that the glue cannot be removed. It is supposed to be tough stuff, and it glows under an IR light source commonly used by police.

When reporting goods stolen the instructions suggest that you need to let the police know that you used Data Dot and provide them with your "DNA" number Huh, how else would they know I used it? But I suppose that does show that this system is simple to use.