SECURE VEHICLE DISABLING

INTRO

Motor vehicle theft is one of the world’s biggest concerns and the fastest-growing crime in many countries around the world. This great challenge for car rental agencies, carsharing clubs, businesses, state organisations and private car owners caused property losses of over 6 billion US dollars globally in 2018. Luckily for them, Teltonika GPS trackers have a remote secure engine cut-off (SECO) functionality that can help recover a stolen vehicle and prevent loss.

CHALLENGE

As statistics show it all over the world, most of the time thieves are well organised and can steal a targeted vehicle such as an automobile, truck, bus, motorcycle, scooter, or snowmobile in a matter of a few seconds. For instance, a car is being stolen every 35 min in Germany, every 10 min in Australia and every 6.5 min in the US.

Another extensive issue – stolen rental cars. For example, between 2015 and 2018, 92,000 rental cars were stolen in Texas alone in the United States. Unfortunately, police forces fail to recover over half of the stolen vehicles. For criminals, it is a relatively low-risk way of making a fortune.

Some known methods used by thieves to steal motor vehicles are theft of an unattended vehicle without a key; taking a vehicle without owner’s consent (twocking); opportunistic theft; carjacking; fraudulent theft; joyriding; frosting; Keyless-Go systems theft and so on.

Also, erratic and intentionally inappropriate driver behaviour and unauthorised use of rental cars cause faster engine, tyres, and components wear, extra fuel consumption, traffic accidents, road infrastructure damage and may result in a substantial amount of expenses for business over time. While other remote vehicle disabling systems available in the market have some drawbacks, Teltonika has come up with the most secure and efficient solution by far – SECO.

SOLUTION

Keeping in mind the scale of motor vehicle thefts and the demand for a solution in the market, Teltonika introduced a remote vehicle disabling system in its GPS trackers known as secure engine cut-off or SECO. This functionality is available in any FMB series tracker with one or more digital output (DOUT) and it takes only a few minutes to set up. For this case, we use the new generation Teltonika model FMB130 with flexible I/O.

The system is used to prevent unauthorised users from operating a vehicle and to gradually decelerate and stop a vehicle in transit under certain pre-determined conditions. In a nutshell, it has been designed to be activated for specific situations, such as unauthorised access or the use of a vehicle.

SECO provides authorised users with the ability to prevent the movement of a vehicle and eventually to stop an operating vehicle with GPRS or SMS text command by simply pressing a button in a dedicated fleet management software program or mobile app.

How it works - when the stolen vehicle speed exceeds the preconfigured threshold speed, the Speed Pulse Scenario will be activated forcing the driver to slow down. After that, when the stolen vehicle speed inevitably goes lower than the preconfigured threshold speed, the GPS tracker will disable speed pulsing and will activate DOUT permanently. So, the vehicle will be gradually and safely decelerated and stopped by controlling the fuel pump of the car.

In essence, remote disabling allows a car owner, a dispatcher or other authorised personnel safely to decelerate a stolen vehicle by gradually limiting a fuel supply to the engine from a remote location. Thus, it will be inevitably brought to a safe and controlled stop which allows to avoid traffic incidence, road infrastructure damage or casualties.

When it’s done, the stolen but now stalled vehicle location can be swiftly tracked by the Automatic Vehicle Locator (AVL) software application in a smartphone, tablet or PC and recovered at once. As a result, automobile loss (and the goods) has been successfully prevented.

Furthermore, all Teltonika GPS trackers are equipped with Immobilizer, Unplug detection, Towing detection, Auto Geofence, and Manual Geofence features which can be used in combination with SECO making a theft process even more challenging and vehicle a less appealing target. Learn more about the Anti-Theft Solution and Stolen Vehicle Recovery use case.

Vehicle disabling system can be integrated with other onboard wireless communications systems that include features such as door sensors, cargo sensors, temperature sensors, electronic cargo seals, and trailer connection and disconnection systems. For example, if the vehicle onboard computer system installed by a car maker or aftermarket supplier detects a loss of signal from the communication network or tampering with electronic cargo seals, a pre-determined vehicle disabling protocol can be initiated. You can learn more about the technical aspects of this use case here.

The most common applications for SECO function are courier delivery services, logistics, cargo forwarders, taxi fleets, expensive construction vehicles, rear antique vehicles, business class corporate fleets, luxury automobiles, yachts, motorboats and similar. Please be advised that SECO functionality is only available in Teltonika FMB series GPS trackers starting with the firmware version 03.28.02 or higher.

TOPOLOGY

BENEFITS

• It is a truly secure feature – SECO allows to recovery of the stolen vehicle and prevents the loss by bringing it to a safe and controlled stop.

  
  

• Facilitates safe cargo – it allows recovering goods loaded on the stolen vehicle (e.g., LCV or HGV).

  
  

• Allows for avoiding traffic incidence, road infrastructure damage or casualties.

  
  

• User-friendly and convenient process management – GPRS or SMS text command is activated by simply pressing a button in a dedicated fleet management software program or mobile app.

  
  

• Do it your way – can be activated by any smartphone or mobile phone with SMS service, tablet, and PC.

  
  

• Saves time, effort, and defeats uncertainty – stalled vehicle location can be tracked by AVL software application to speed up the recovery.

  
  

• The most secure and efficient – remote vehicle disabling solution by far.

  
  

• Keeping your business intact – can be activated by any smartphone or mobile phone with SMS service, tablet, and PC.

  
  

WHY TELTONIKA?

Protecting corporate, shared, rental, and other vehicles requires a proactive approach to security. Teltonika's SECO secure vehicle immobilization system provides instant control over vehicle access, ensuring that only authorised users can operate fleet assets. Its advanced features can reduce risk or prevent theft and fraud, significantly increasing fleet protection and reliability.

With a strong global presence in the telematics and IoT market, Teltonika delivers security solutions that adapt to the challenges of modern mobility. SECO's integration capabilities allow fleet managers to implement remote disabling without disrupting operations, ensuring continuous protection and operational efficiency. By partnering with Teltonika's telematics division, businesses take a decisive step towards safeguarding their fleets with innovative technology.