Join the dots to fight crime

AN IMPORTANT step in the fight against vehicle crime was taken last week, with the announcement of an SABS standard (SANS 534-1) for microdotting vehicles. The next step will be a consultative process involving the Department of Transport and regional bodies, which can hopefully lead to this crime-fighting technique being legislated as standard fitment for all new vehicles.

At present there are only about 370000 vehicles in SA fitted with the microdot identity recognition system and Business Against Crime SA (BACSA), which is driving the process with determination and enthusiasm, hopes legislation will make this number grow .

At present only Nissan (since October 2006) and BMW (since October 2007) microdot all their vehicles, while Toyota SA applies them to the Quantum van and minibus, and Avis (since 2003) makes it a required fitment by all its rental vehicle suppliers. Other organisations that microdot their vehicles are the SA Police Service (SAPS) and Vehicle Security Association of SA, while the project has the full support of the SA Vehicle, Rental and Leasing Association.

Both Nissan and Avis were honoured for their strong and long-standing support for the system with special awards at a BACSA conference at Nissan's head office in Rosslyn last week.

Microdotting involves the application of 10000 unique plastic or metal microdots, 1mm in diameter, to each vehicle. In each case the dot includes a number, either a PIN (personal identity number) code or the 17-digit VIN (vehicle identity number), with the number being repeated as many as 10 times on each tiny dot.

In the case of Nissan, where we witnessed the practical application of the identifier system, the dots, which are mixed with a water-based adhesive, are applied to 88 different places, underneath and inside each vehicle as well as under the bonnet. Nissan SA uses three work stations with underground pits, in a special fitment centre and is able to process up to 450 units a day if required.

All Nissan vehicles, both locally manufactured and imported, are fitted with microdots using the DataDot process and each is externally identified with a Nissan anti-theft system decal on the window.

All "saleable" components are marked and this leads criminals to describe microdotted vehicles as "contaminated" as they are difficult to dispose of. An ultraviolet light is used to highlight the position of the dots on the vehicle and then a microscope enables law enforcement agencies to read the PIN code or VIN number to positively identify a particular vehicle.

According to senior superintendent Andre Barkhuizen, who is commander of the SAPS vehicle crime unit, the number of vehicles stolen or hijacked annually has dropped to about 88000, which are worth R9bn. (By comparison, the number of vehicles stolen and hijacked in 1998 amounted to 120000 units).

About half of the stolen or hijacked vehicles are used for some type of criminal activity, while 60% of these vehicles undergo an identity change, either by "rebirthing" or cloning. The recovery rate is about 46% and many of these vehicles cannot be positively identified, so are crushed under police supervision, meaning a loss of more than R1bn a year .

International statistics indicate that the use of microdot systems can lead to a decrease of 50%-60% in the number of stolen or hijacked vehicles and to an improvement of more than 55% in recoveries. Locally more than 3000 microdotted vehicles have been recovered and in 400 of them this was the only method by which they could be identified.

At present four microdot systems have shown full compliance to the new SABS standard, being DataDot, Holomatrix, Impimpi and Recoveri. The final test involved a scrapped police car (a Nissan Almera) being blown up by explosives on a shooting range in the Free State. The various microdots were subjected to temperatures approaching 3 000° C as well as the explosive force, and all passed this test as well as a number of others that involved strong water jets and the use of solvents.

BACSA deputy CEO Graham Wright said there was an initiative to drive the microdotting of vehicles to become a legal requirement globally, but he said this would be a slow process and stressed the importance of a far higher fitment rate of the system to new and used vehicles in SA as a major crime deterrent.

Retrofitting would cost between R1995 to R2400, said DataDot sales and marketing director, Derek Menday. Certain insurers will reduce premiums.

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