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The primary line of defence for your treasured vehicle, the car alarm was invented to match increasing demand for more security on cars. In olden times cars may have been left unlocked or unwatched, but in modern times car theft is an ever growing crime problem.

Car alarms are designed to make a loud noise, or sometimes even immobilise the engine, if a car is disturbed. This should scare away a criminal as it will attract unwanted attention. They can be found in different designs that are triggered by different stimuli. Some feel vibrations, tilting of the car, simply touching the car, opening of the doors, changes in battery voltage, or using sensors like infrared. The problem is that the more sensitive your car is, the more likely that it will go off by accident and you will need to rush of to turn it off. Accidental triggering happens all the time and sadly contributes to the problem of people ignoring a blaring car alarm, the opposite of the effect desired!

The modern wave of alarm companies have reduced their noisy alarms. Instead silent alarms which disable the engine make the car far more effectively protected. For a free some companies install tracking devices, meaning that if a car is taken they can relay data to the police showing the current whereabouts of the vehicle. The problem with these is they do not deter theft of items inside a car or vandalism.

One invention that makes a difference is a system where the triggered alarm sends a buzzer signal to the driver's key chain, so that they know a car is being broken into without a blaring alarm. This is preferable for those who would prefer to be able to catch thieves in the act, usually more deterring than just a loud noise with the occasional passer-by glancing over.