15 Signs Someone's Been Watching Your Car Before They Steal It (Most Owners Miss #4)
Roy Callahan
3,078 views
🔗 Everything I check on a house, room by room, written down: https://roycallahanbooks.com/
15 Signs Someone's Been Watching Your Car Before They Steal It (Most Owners Miss #4)
Your car was picked days before it disappeared. Somebody watched it leave, watched it come back, learned when it sits still, and tested how you react. The night it vanishes is just the final step. Roy Callahan spent 26 years with a small-town police department, most of it in plainclothes working property crime, and nearly every stolen-vehicle report he took came with the same line from the owner: "it came out of nowhere." It never did.
In this video Roy counts down 15 signs that a thief has been studying your car, from the unfamiliar sedan with a clean view of your driveway to the small missing valve caps that are really a test of whether you're paying attention. Number four is the one almost nobody catches, because it happens while your keys are sitting on the kitchen counter and your car unlocks itself in the driveway. You'll learn how relay attacks on keyless-entry fobs actually work, why a tow truck on your street with nothing on the back deserves a second look, what the "handle test" looks like on doorbell camera footage, why a stranger asking if you have both keys is not a car guy, and how the dry run the night before a theft shows up as a motion light, a two-second alarm chirp, or a dog that won't settle.
Every fix here is cheap or free: lock the car every time, keep the inside boring, put the fob in a Faraday pouch, keep your plate and house number off the internet, and when the car or the driveway feels off, go outside and look.
Timestamps
0:00 Your car was stolen three days before it was stolen
15. The car that keeps having a view of your car
14. Somebody photographing your plate
13. The handle test
12. A little mark you didn't put there
11. The window shopper
10. Your parking rhythm has been learned
9. Somebody keeps asking about the car
8. It's been moved
7. The tow truck that doesn't belong
6. The stranger who's "just checking something"
5. Something small is missing
4. Your key fob has been probed
3. You told them yourself
2. Somebody's interested in your keys
The dry run
If this helped, share it with somebody who just put a new car in the driveway or keeps the fob on a hook by the front door. Subscribe for more from Roy Callahan on how criminals actually choose their targets, and how to make sure they choose somebody else.
This video is for general awareness and educational purposes. Always contact your local police department if you believe a crime is being planned or has occurred.
#CarTheft #HomeSecurity #RoyCallahan #KeylessEntry #CrimePrevention #RelayAttack
car theft, signs your car is being watched, car theft prevention, how thieves steal cars, keyless car theft, relay attack, key fob theft, faraday pouch, car thieves casing, how car thieves pick targets, stolen car warning signs, protect your car from theft, car security tips, retired cop advice, retired police officer, roy callahan, home security, property crime, catalytic converter theft, car stolen from driveway, tow truck car theft, car burglary, vehicle theft prevention, how burglars pick houses, stop car theft, car theft tricks, thieves watching your house, driveway security, keyless entry hack, push button start theft, crime prevention tips, security tips 2026, hank mercer, ray colvin, things burglars notice, car theft signs, is my car being watched, key fob signal blocking, car alarm going off at night, license plate cloning
9 Comments
A neighbor who always ridiculed us for keeping doors locked and keeping our car in a locked garage recently had his car stolen in the way you described. It was my son who picked up on some of the night time warning signs - his room overlooks the neighbor's driveway. The neighbor thought it was a good joke until the day the car was gone.
15 Signs Someone's Been Watching Your Car Before They Steal It (Most Owners Miss #4)
Roy Callahan
3,078 views
🔗 Everything I check on a house, room by room, written down: https://roycallahanbooks.com/
15 Signs Someone's Been Watching Your Car Before They Steal It (Most Owners Miss #4)
Your car was picked days before it disappeared. Somebody watched it leave, watched it come back, learned when it sits still, and tested how you react. The night it vanishes is just the final step. Roy Callahan spent 26 years with a small-town police department, most of it in plainclothes working property crime, and nearly every stolen-vehicle report he took came with the same line from the owner: "it came out of nowhere." It never did.
In this video Roy counts down 15 signs that a thief has been studying your car, from the unfamiliar sedan with a clean view of your driveway to the small missing valve caps that are really a test of whether you're paying attention. Number four is the one almost nobody catches, because it happens while your keys are sitting on the kitchen counter and your car unlocks itself in the driveway. You'll learn how relay attacks on keyless-entry fobs actually work, why a tow truck on your street with nothing on the back deserves a second look, what the "handle test" looks like on doorbell camera footage, why a stranger asking if you have both keys is not a car guy, and how the dry run the night before a theft shows up as a motion light, a two-second alarm chirp, or a dog that won't settle.
Every fix here is cheap or free: lock the car every time, keep the inside boring, put the fob in a Faraday pouch, keep your plate and house number off the internet, and when the car or the driveway feels off, go outside and look.
Timestamps
0:00 Your car was stolen three days before it was stolen
15. The car that keeps having a view of your car
14. Somebody photographing your plate
13. The handle test
12. A little mark you didn't put there
11. The window shopper
10. Your parking rhythm has been learned
9. Somebody keeps asking about the car
8. It's been moved
7. The tow truck that doesn't belong
6. The stranger who's "just checking something"
5. Something small is missing
4. Your key fob has been probed
3. You told them yourself
2. Somebody's interested in your keys
The dry run
If this helped, share it with somebody who just put a new car in the driveway or keeps the fob on a hook by the front door. Subscribe for more from Roy Callahan on how criminals actually choose their targets, and how to make sure they choose somebody else.
This video is for general awareness and educational purposes. Always contact your local police department if you believe a crime is being planned or has occurred.
#CarTheft #HomeSecurity #RoyCallahan #KeylessEntry #CrimePrevention #RelayAttack
car theft, signs your car is being watched, car theft prevention, how thieves steal cars, keyless car theft, relay attack, key fob theft, faraday pouch, car thieves casing, how car thieves pick targets, stolen car warning signs, protect your car from theft, car security tips, retired cop advice, retired police officer, roy callahan, home security, property crime, catalytic converter theft, car stolen from driveway, tow truck car theft, car burglary, vehicle theft prevention, how burglars pick houses, stop car theft, car theft tricks, thieves watching your house, driveway security, keyless entry hack, push button start theft, crime prevention tips, security tips 2026, hank mercer, ray colvin, things burglars notice, car theft signs, is my car being watched, key fob signal blocking, car alarm going off at night, license plate cloning
https://roycallahanbooks.com/
178 checks across three books. Almost none of it costs money.