SCHERTZ, Texas – The Schertz Police Department is raising awareness about the use of bumper stickers and decals to encourage residents to better protect their personal information.
Anna Kraft, the special project officer for Schertz PD, said the department has seen bumper stickers that could give too much information to criminals.
“Some people may think it is harmless and that it is just a bumper sticker, but some criminals may actually take advantage of that,” Kraft said. “We just want to bring the awareness so people can watch for their surroundings and watch what they are giving to the public. It is just like credit card information. We want to guard our private information.”
There are different examples Kraft said raises the most concerns.
“Stick figure families on the back of the car, or if you have a military person, you are telling that criminal that, ‘I have a spouse that is not home all of the time,’” Kraft said. “You are also telling them how many kids you have. If you have a dog, you are showing off of a specific breed. For example, if you have a chihuahua, you are telling that criminal you have a small dog in the house that will probably be unable to protect you as a guard dog.”
Another example of a concerning bumper sticker or window decal the department is warning about deals with specific information about your child.
“The wonderful, ‘My child is an honor roll student at such and such school,’” Kraft said. “Well, now you just told them what school your child goes to.”
She said not advertising that kind of information is a way to be better safe than sorry.
“Everybody deserves to be proud and show your proudness of their families and kids, what their husband or wife does,” Kraft said. “We just want them to be a little bit safe when they advertise what their family does. If you have information to put out there, people are going to pay attention. Back in those days, I don’t think we had to worry about it too much, but as times have changed, we want to bring out the awareness that we may want to get out of our old habits and start paying attention.”
