Why the cellphone camera has become the latest tool for thieves

Cellphone cameras can see right through the darkest tint on vehicle windows

Law enforcement also suggests that you lock your car when it is parked, park the vehicle where there is good lighting, make sure that your car alarm (if you have one) is in working condition, and strongly consider installing security cameras around your home.

Because this is illegal, you don’t hear phone manufacturers bragging about it. Imagine Jony Ive saying something like, “View everything that a car owner is hiding behind the tinted windows on his car. X-ray auto snooping. The latest feature on the most powerful iPhone yet.”

The science behind this was revealed by a Reddit user with the handle “First_half_23” who writes, “Basics physics tells us this: When seeing through a tinted glass, the side with the less ambient light can see through to the side with the more ambient light. When you put your camera right on the glass, you’re reducing the gap to zero thereby making the side with your phone camera the side with the less ambient light. Therefore, you can see inside.”

So now you know why you should be wary when someone appears to be taking a photo of the tinted windows of your parked car. If this person is holding the camera on his phone right up against one of the side windows, you should be suspicious enough to call the police immediately.