EP2646958A1

EP2646958A1 - Security system and method

Info

Publication number: EP2646958A1
Application number: EP11799498.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Eamonn Kelly Brennan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-11-30
Filing date: 2011-11-29
Publication date: 2013-10-09
Also published as: WO2012073227A1

Abstract

A security system and method for tracing an asset such as plant or equipment comprising a database hub for receiving characterising data on the plant or equipment from a user; a data file creating function for recording the characterising data in a data file to uniquely identify the plant or equipment and a theft reporting function for reporting the plant or equipment as stolen in which the security system is co-operable with third parties to facilitate the rapid and immediate identification and recovery of the stolen plant or equipment.

Description

A Security System And Method

Introduction This invention relates to a security system and method and, in particular, to a security system and method for tracing plant and equipment.

Background of the Invention It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, although the following

description is directed generally to plant, the systems and methods of the invention are equally applicable to other machinery including equipment and tools. The term "plant and/or equipment" is intended to embrace, inter alia, plant, equipment, tools, boats, yachts, agricultural machinery and equipment, quads, motorbikes, cars, vintage cars, domestic equipment, household equipment and commercial equipment and in general all plant and equipment at the risk of theft and which may be insurable. Where necessary, the system and method of the invention can be adapted for use with any or all of the above mentioned plant and equipment without departing from the scope of the invention. For the sake of convenience, the generic term "asset" is also employed to encompass the above mentioned terminology.

The theft and security of expensive plant, equipment and tools is becoming increasingly problematical. A number of techniques have been developed in an attempt to counteract such crimes e.g. tracking systems and simple registration systems. However, known tracking and identification systems suffer from a number of disadvantages e.g. as plant and equipment are not centrally registered by governments (as is the case with cars, truck etc.) known systems fail to uniquely identify plant and equipment thereby being of limited use in tracing, identifying and locating stolen plant and equipment. In addition, known systems are not sufficiently comprehensive to fully characterise plant and equipment. Moreover, when plant and equipment are reported as stolen, poor record keeping and insufficient details on the equipment can make identification, tracing and location of the stolen or cloned plant and equipment difficult if not impossible. Accordingly, it has become increasingly costly to insure plant and equipment while the poor identification of individual plant and equipment can render the detection of insurance fraud and the recovery of stolen plant and equipment in general extremely difficult. An object of the invention is to overcome the problems of the prior art. Summary of the Invention

According to the invention there is provided a security system for tracing plant or equipment comprising:

a database hub for receiving characterising data on the plant or equipment from a user;

a data file creating function for recording the characterising data in a data file to uniquely identify the plant or equipment and a theft reporting function for reporting the plant or equipment as stolen wherein the security system is co-operable with third parties to facilitate the identification and recovery of the stolen plant or equipment. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the security system is web-based.

Advantageously, the security system is communicable online with the third parties.

Preferably, the third parties are selected from the group comprising other users, law enforcement agencies, custom control agencies and insurance companies.

Suitably, the security system further comprises a data file quality assessment function. Preferably, the data file quality assessment function is adapted to generate a star quality rating.

More preferably, the data file quality assessment function is adapted for use in determining insurance premiums for the plant or equipment characterised in the data file. In a further embodiment of the invention, the security system further comprises a for sale and/or a for hire function for plant or equipment. Preferably, the for sale and/or the for hire function is communicable online with external advertising websites. In one embodiment of the invention, the security system is accessible via a user mobile device. Preferably, the security system is adapted to record the GPS coordinates of the mobile device. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the asset comprises plant and the characterising data is selected from the group comprising a VIN number, a PIN number, an engine number, a front axle number, a rear axle number, a fleet number, a registration plate number, a chassis number, a plant make and a plant model. Suitably, the characterising data further comprises a photographic record of the plant. Advantageously, the characterising data further comprises markings unique to the plant.

The invention also extends to a method for tracing an asset comprising:

receiving characterising data on the asset from a user on a database hub; creating a data file;

recording the characterising data in the data file to uniquely identify the asset and

communicating the data file to third parties to facilitate the identification and recovery of a stolen asset.

Preferably, the characterising data is received via the internet on a website and the data file is communicated to the third parties via the internet. Alternatively, the characterising data is received via a mobile device on a website and the data file is communicated to the third parties via the mobile device. Suitably, the mobile device comprises a smartphone.

Advantageously, the method of the invention further comprises the step of assessing the quality of the data file. Preferably, the method further comprises the step of generating a star quality rating for the data file.

Suitably, the asset comprises plant and the characterising data is selected from the group comprising a VIN number, a PIN number, an engine number, a front axle number, a rear axle number, a fleet number, a registration plate number, a chassis number, a plant make and a plant model. Preferably, the characterising data further comprises a photographic record of the plant. More preferably, the characterising data further comprises markings unique to the plant. In a further embodiment, the invention relates to a computer readable medium containing program instructions for causing a computer to perform a method for tracing an asset comprising:

communicating the data file to third parties to facilitate the identification and recovery of a stolen asset. The invention also extends to a theft security method for an asset comprising a system as hereinbefore defined and to a computer readable medium containing program instructions for causing a computer to perform a method for tracing an asset as hereinbefore defined.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic overview of the system of the invention;

Figure 2 is a block diagram of a computing device programmed in accordance with the invention;

Figure 3 is a block diagram of a networked system of the invention in which client laptops and/or PC's are in communication with the hub of the invention via a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN) or the internet employing personal computers, smartphones or the like;

Figure 4 is a general flow diagram of the security system and method of the invention; Figure 5 is a detailed flow diagram of the creation of a Data File, Star Rating Theft Check and Theft Report for a piece of plant or equipment in accordance with the system and method of the invention, and Figure 6 is a general flow diagram of the security system and method of the invention adapted for use with smartphones and similar mobile devices.

Detailed Description of the Invention The system and method of the invention assists insurance companies to efficiently underwrite contractors' plant insurance and generates significant claims savings in doing so for insurers of plant and equipment. The system and method also assists insurers in identifying insured contractors' plant thereby reducing fraudulent claims, under-declaration and plant cloning.

The system of the invention is also communicable with suppliers of security devices such as tracking and registration systems to create a theft solutions hub to reduce plant theft. Moreover, an automatically generated theft report provides police forces with the detailed plant and equipment characterisation data required to effectively identify and recover stolen plant and equipment. The above mentioned actions can be achieved in real time.

In exchange for high quality star rated data supplied by a plant owner to fully characterise individual plant and equipment when creating a Data File, the plant owner can be rewarded by the relevant insurance company with reduced excess charges and/or reduced premiums.

The system and method of the invention is adapted for use in the traceable buying, selling and hiring of plant. The detailed characterisation and resultant traceability of plant and equipment provided by the method and system of the invention reduces the risk of theft, improves stolen plant and equipment recovery rates and increases profits. In the present application, the following terms are employed:

User - a person who registers and pays to use the system of the invention (via username and password access); Account - a grouping of users that typically are employees of a single legal company;

Visitor - a person who views a public website incorporating the system of the invention without registration;

System Administrator - an individual who performs housekeeping functions relating to the operation of the website;

Asset - an item with some unique identification code(s) entered in the database of the system of the invention; Master File - a collection of all assets added to database for a specific account;

Sub-File - a logical grouping of one or more assets from an account's Master File. Typically a sub-file may be used to represent the set of assets at a given location for a given account.

As shown in Figure 1 , a system of the invention is made up of a number of general modules or services communicable with a database hub 1. In particular, a system administrator module 2 communicates with the database hub 1 to operate the system. A user also communicates with the database hub 1 via a user module 3 while reports for the user are generated by the database hub 1 and communicated to the user via a user reports hub 4. A history check can be performed on plant and equipment via a history check module 5 accessible via a publicly accessible website while hire and sales of equipment can be performed employing the database hub 1 via a hire and sales module 6 also accessible via the public website.

The system of the invention is also provided with an export facility module 7 to trace export and/or import of plant and equipment while the database hub 1 is also communicable with insurance companies and law enforcement agencies (e.g.

police/customs) via an insurance companies/law enforcement agencies module 8. As described further below, alerts 9 can be transmitted to the insurance companies and/or the law enforcement agencies e.g. in the event of a theft. Figure 1 is a block diagram of a typical computing device 10 for use with the systems and methods of the invention. The computing device 10 is made up of a processor 1 1 , RAM 12, ROM 13, memory 14 and an input/output module 15 for operating the computing device 10.

Application data in accordance with the invention is stored in RAM 12 in the form of tasks or applications 16 when the computing device 10 is in operation and software tasks are being performed by the computing device 10. The computing device 10 can include various forms of computer readable media.

Applications 17, an operating system 18 and data 19 can be stored in the memory 14.

Figure 2 is a block diagram of a networked system 20 of the invention in which the computing devices 10 of Figure 2 in the form of user PC's 21 and/or laptops 22 adapted to implement the systems and methods of the invention as outlined further below are in communication with the hub 1 via the internet 23 from disparate locations and user types. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art and as described further below in relation to Figure 6, smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices can be used in combination with or in place of the PC's 21 and/or laptops 22.

The system shown in Figure 1 incorporates the following functions: - an Asset Management Database and associated business process/workflow to allow users to add details of their plant machinery to the database;

- the ability for users to provide detailed descriptions/reports to brokers and insurance companies of the plant they hold in return for reduced excess and premiums on their policies;

- the ability to alert and give detailed, accurate and timely information to law enforcement agencies in the event of a loss or theft of plant machinery;

- the ability for potential buyers to purchase a complete history of plant or equipment prior to purchase;

- the ability to use the data on file for other services such as to advertise the plant machinery for hire or sale;

- the ability to extract accurate reports relating to the stock of plant machinery in the market. The modules or services described in Figure 1 are operated by sub-systems which serve as the main operating functions of the system of the invention. As will be described further below, the sub-systems are logically grouped to implement real functionality for end users. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the subsystems are grouped as follows:

^■ Login (Access Control)

^• User Validation (username and password)

^• Forgot Password function ^■ New User Registration • Register Account Details

° Username (email address) / Password (secure) ° Agree to Terms of Use and Privacy Policy ° Owner Details

^■ including location on Google (Trade Mark) Maps

• Validate Email address/account

° Insurance & Finance Details i user enters plant details as outlined below.

My Account Details

• Change Password

• Contact Details

°Address / map location

° Contact Details (telephone/fax/email)

• Insurance Company Details (insurer and broker)

• Payment History

° Print Statement

° Reprint Invoice/Receipt

• Renew/Upgrade/Suspend Account (see Payments below)

User Management

• Add other users e.g. site managers

^• Assign roles/access rights ^■ Inventory Management

• Enter Inventory

° Asset Identification Details

^■ Serial Number Validation

^■ Tag/Fleet Reference - this reference is used to allow users to cross reference any asset to their internal asset management system (e.g. Coins)

^■ Asset Purchase Price (if known)

^■ Asset Current Market Valuation (mandatory as price is dependent on this)

° Accepted by the system on trust initially until there is enough information to auto suggest a value

° Users are reminded that this value is used in their insurance report and thus must be accurate

^■ Other Mandatory Fields as outlined in Table 1 below:

Table 1

Mandatory Fields Information For Inventory Data Entry

Data Entries ( Mandatory)

VIN Vehicle Registration Number is a standard 17 digit number used to uniquely identify road vehicles. - Serial, Chassis or PIN (Product Information Number): The Serial Number identifies an off-road machine in the same way as a VIN. The numbers vary in format between manufacturers.

- Stamped-in Serial Number: Either the full serial number or a segment of the full serial number stamped into the unit in a location often easily visible during inspection, sometimes close to the serial number plate;

- Engine Number: A serial number either on a plate or stamped which uniquely identifies the engine;

- Component Number: A serial number either on a plate or stamped into an

attachment which uniquely identifies an attachment such as a bucket or a blade.

De-duplication feature

^• All assets entered are cross checked against other items in the customer's account and also against the global plant files database for duplication

° Search is based on chassis and serial/identification numbers entered ° User is given a warning in this case to re-check the details and/or to contact the System Administrator.

^■ This is flagged to the system administrator for further investigation if warranted.

Images

^• Watermark to be applied

^• Age of images may affect Star Rating (see below)

Complete Ownership History Security Features

• Security systems membership details are added e.g. Cesar (Trade Mark)

° Security system has a structured form for entering the

data. Alternatively, a free form text box is employed to enter all associated details

° In all cases the system alerts the user to the fact that they must ensure accuracy of these details in the event of a theft and for the validity of their insurance.

Other Markings Types

• Covert

• Overt

• Concealed

^• Each of the above has optional photographs

^• It is possible to 'pin' the location of these markings onto a profile/photograph of the asset i.e. the details are entered and the associated image uploaded or an existing photograph/image is marked showing the mark's location on the asset.

Notes and Other Details

^• Free form notes that may be relevant as part of a theft report.

Finance Details

^• Finance Company details Value/Term of finance and notes.

■ Confirmation of Accuracy of information entered (i.e. users must agree to Terms & Conditions)

^■ Print System ID / Security Tag

^■ Data Quality Scoring ^■ 5 Star Rating model (see below)

^■ View Inventory "Master File" (summary details and status)

• Print / Email / Export Inventory File ^■ Manage Sites "Sub File"

• Site Label/Name

• Location Details including Google Maps reference

• Manager/Contact Details ^■ Transfer asset between sites i.e. marking the asset to be part of a new sub-file

^■ Delete asset

• Note the asset information is kept in the database and the asset is 'unlinked' from this plant file • Users must specify a reason e.g. 'Duplicate', 'Error', 'Sold', Scrapped, etc. (data is quarantined in the Data File to prevent cloning of data)

• The system distinguishes between a delete and a transfer by using a reason code.

^■ Insurance Report

• Prompt user to review asset current market values and confirm contents of master file

° Print Report

° Email Report as a read only .pdf report (e.g. to broker)

° Download as .csv for Excel

NOTE: The above Insurance Report functions are only be available if the user has paid a relevant usage fees/subscription. ^■ Theft/Lost Report

• Enter Details

° Plant Details

^■ All relevant details are taken from the relevant plant file and copied in for review and update if required by the user.

■ More than one asset may be listed on a theft report

° Confirm Owner Contact Details (default from account) ° Where and When Stolen/Lost?

^■ Plot on Google Maps

° Police Details

■ if known - these may be added later °Notes/Additional supporting information

• Pay Fee and Submit Theft/Lost Report

• Owner notified by Email and on screen of process and key contacts so that he/she may report the theft/loss in the most accurate and efficient way. The following are also clearly notified to the owner on screen and by email:

° System reference number - also visible publicly on website

° Police Access Security Code. (See notes on Police Access, 'Users

And Roles', below)

° Details sent automatically to Other Registration Schemes e.g. Cesar (Trade Mark)/Data Tag (Trade Mark)

^■ one email per item in the report that has such a tags

^■ user can confirm the sending of this notice by email to Other Registration Scheme

• Notice placed on Public Website

• Print/Email Theft Report

° Owner map, email, post or fax information to a 3^rd party, insurance broker or the security services

^• Daily reminders emailed to plant owner to enter crime reference number

^• Enter Crime Reference Number

° Once entered the user may approve the emailing of the theft report to system configured contacts e.g. the stolen vehicle unit, port authorities, etc.

^• Viewings log (see public website access below)

^• Cancel/Recall Theft Report ° The user is shown the procedure and list of contacts on the screen to cancel a report

• Update Lost/Stolen Asset (the user is reminded to update the status of the system by an alert on the user's account (on log in). After 3 months the user is emailed weekly to update the status of the asset) i.e. mark plant as

° Recovered

° Never Recovered

° Found & Destroyed/Scrapped

(Note: where relevant the user is asked to identify the security/recovery companies involved in the recovery and a score given.) This information may be used to publish a league table of most effective security tagging and tracking devices.

^■ Transfer Ownership of Asset

• To insurance company (if stolen and not recovered)

• To finance company (if repossessed)

• To new owner (if sold)

° Note: In the above cases the asset is now 'orphaned' without belonging to any active user's Data File. In future, if a new user should enter in a matching chassis number the system will then re-attach the asset to the new user's Data File.

° If a new owner is not a user of the system of the invention, the asset becomes 'orphaned' awaiting to be claimed by the new owner

(triggered by the entry of matching make/model, chassis and/or serial numbers). As indicated above, the system of the invention is also provided with a Sales and Hire module 6. A user can search the Sales and Hire module 6 by:

^■ Make/Model

^■ Plant Category

■ Year of Manufacture (advanced search)

^■ Value (advanced search)

^■ Location (advanced search)

- Hours Used (advanced search) The results of such a search can be sorted by

^■ Price

^■ Year of Manufacture

and the details can be viewed according to

^■ Plant Details

■ Photos.

The seller of the plant can then be contacted by email as required.

It is envisaged that the following users would employ the system and method of the invention:

Plant Owners

These users include plant hire companies (large volume of plant of different types) and smaller plant owners (including farmers, building contractors, logistics and retail companies with plant, etc). Plant Administrators would have full access to all functions required to manage all aspects of the plant Data Files a company owns including transfer of ownership and adding of new plant items. Site Managers may manage one or more site files and associated plant machinery. However, Site Managers cannot transfer ownership or add new plant items but may update details of a plant item and instigate a stolen report. Other staff can be set up with read only or limited access to the system as required.

Insurance Agencies and Brokers

This user group does not have direct access. Instead the Plant Owner provides the insurance agencies and brokers with a report from the system of all information they require to attach to a policy application form. Security Services

Access by the police and security services may be granted by a Plant Owner via a security code. This code is generated on the system by the plant owner and may be used by the police to access the full plant files information relating to a Theft Report. The security services user will be required to:

- enter the Theft Report Number;

enter the unique security code provided by the plant owner;

- enter a captcha to prevent "machine access". It is the responsibility of both parties to keep the security code confidential and safe. An expiry date and/or a maximum uses or maximum incorrect attempts allowed is provided as an added security measure. Plant owners may then regenerate a new security code as required. As indicated above, the system of the invention incorporates a Star Rating System. Users are compelled by the system of the invention to maintain accurate and complete data about their assets which is supplied to their insurance

company/broker. Reduced excess on their insurance policies and in some cases reduced premiums may result. Moreover, a reduced risk of fraud, theft and/or an increased chance of recovery results.

The format of the star rating system is "N Star (x%)" where N is the star rating from 1 to 5 and x% is a second dimension or qualifier to the star rating. For example, "3 Star (50%)".

Table 2 below is illustrative of the star rating system employed in the present invention:

Table 2

Star Rating System

Figures 4 and 5 are flow diagrams which illustrate the manner in which the above mentioned functions are inter-related to effect various transactions employing the system and method of the invention.

As shown, a plant owner user accesses the web-based system of the invention online to create plant Data Files for their plant or equipment. Data entry is effected employing dropdown menus. As indicated above, the plant to be registered is characterised according to Category, Make, Model, Identification Numbers, Uploaded Images or Video Footage, Theft Solution data relevant to the plant, Service History, Safety Checks, Ownership Records and Data Transfers, Insurance Details and Finance Details. The Identification Numbers are selected from any or all of the VIN Number, PIN Number, Engine Number, Front and Rear Axle Number, Fleet Number, Registration Plate and Chassis Number. Following entry of the above data, a cloning check is automatically performed by the system of the invention to prevent fraud.

The Theft Solutions data can include Other Registration Schemes (e.g. Cesar (Trade Mark)), Tracking Systems (e.g. Alatus (Trade Mark), Cobra Trak (Trade Mark), Sat Trak (Trade Mark)) and Marking Systems (Datatag (Trade Mark), SelectaMark (Trade Mark)).

In general, Marking Systems are made up of Data Dots, Transponders and the like. The system of the invention is also adapted to record Unique Markings i.e. unique characterisation data based on unique markings on the plant or equipment. The Unique Markings can be made up of Unique Overt Markings (e.g. damage to the plant, engravings, stickers etc.), Unique Covert Markings (e.g. chemical tracing, microdots etc.) and Unique Concealed Markings.

Further Theft Solution data relating to Immobilisers, Isolators and Unique Keys can also be entered (e.g. Met Lock (Trade Mark), Kosran (Trade Mark)).

The data submitted by the Plant Owner user is collated by the system of the invention to create a Data File for the plant or equipment. A Star Rating as described above is created for the plant and added to the Data File together with an automatically created Unique Reference Number.

A Plant Identification Disk is then created (incorporating a 2D or 3D readable Barcode Reference) which can be placed by the Plant Owner on the plant. The Plant Identification Disk can be formed from destructible vinyl which breaks into smaller pieces (i.e. pixelates) should an attempt be made to remove the Disk.

The Barcode Reference is readable employing mobile phone technology

incorporating a Barcode Reader e.g. to determine whether an item of registered plant is stolen, the Barcode on the plant is photographed using a mobile phone and employing an app., the system of the invention is searched to determine whether the plant is listed as stolen (the Plant Owner having previously reported the plant as stolen).

Alternatively, in the event of theft, suspect plant can be examined to compare its identity with the characterisation data recorded in the system of the invention i.e. searching can be conducted based on the entered characterisation data, the barcode or the Plant Reference Number.

In general where registered plant is stolen, the Plant Owner creates a Theft Report by entering details of the theft for the plant Data File. The Theft Report includes details of the theft and is forwarded to a Police Officer (who can alert Customs or Port Authorities where appropriate). The Police Officer is permitted access to the system of the invention by generating a one-off Unique Security Code for use by one officer (Username and Password required). The system of the invention is adapted to permit the Police Officer to nominate another user. In this instance, a unique Security Code is generated that permits access to the nominee once he/she logs into the system. Moreover, a forensic trail is created by users that shows all viewings of the Theft Report and Data File. The system of the invention is also communicable with the relevant Theft Solutions providers described above to notify the Theft Solutions Providers of the theft.

Following creation of the Theft Report, the Theft Solutions providers are

automatically notified by the system of the theft. In addition, the Data File on the website is automatically marked as Stolen.

In a further embodiment of the invention, the Data File is adaptable to incorporate a default Geo-Fence to restrict movement of the plant to within a designated cordoned geographical area which can be read directly from the Data File or accessed via the Barcode reader.

The created Data Files on the system of the invention can be made available to view by the general public in a restricted format so that public users of the system can search the Data Files for plant to hire, purchase, value and also to investigate whether plant being offered for sale elsewhere is reported as stolen. Plant Owners can also offer their registered plant for sale or hire. In one

embodiment of the invention, the system is provided with templates to extract data from the Data Files and to transmit this data to other websites and magazines in the form of advertisements for sale or hire.

As previously described, the system of the invention is also provided with public access to enable the public to report sightings of stolen plant. In addition, stolen plant can be reported as recovered and the Data File updated accordingly.

Data in the system of the invention can also be collated as required to generate statistical data on thefts, recoveries, efficacy of Theft Solutions and the like as required. Figure 6 is a flow diagram of a further embodiment of the invention for use with smartphones and other mobile devices such as iPhones (Trade Mark), iPads (Trade Mark) and the like which the functions described in relation to Figures 4 and 5 are employed in the mobile devices. As shown in the drawing, users can access the hub 1 at the website of the system of the invention via a mobile device to perform any of the desired range of functions as described above.

For example, a user can perform a check to determine if an item of plant (i.e. an asset) is registered. Via the mobile device, the user can simply enter the Manufacturer's Identification Numbers (e.g. Serial Numbers, VIN, PIN, Transmission No., Engine Number, Axle Numbers, Component Numbers etc.) to search for a record of the plant. Alternatively, a search can be performed employing the Unique Reference Number from the ID Tag on the plant if present. Searches may also be performed based on ID Tag data from other Registration Schemes.

Where the plant is identified as Registered, the system and the user can therefore identify whether the plant is reported as stolen. If the plant is stolen, system automatically records the GPS position of the where the plant was viewed by the user and the owner and police can be alerted as before via email and/or text alerts as desired.

If the plant is not stolen, the user can be queried as to whether the user wishes to purchase the plant or whether the user wishes to verify a seller as the legal owner of the plant. In the latter instance, the seller (if present), is requested to enter the seller's PIN Number into the mobile device to access verification information such as photographs and Data Access Permits.

Where the seller enters the correct PIN Number, the purchaser can continue with the purchasing transaction in the usual manner safe in the knowledge that the seller is the rightful owner of the plant. However, the where an incorrect PIN Number is entered, the purchaser is alerted that there is no proof of ownership and that the transaction should not be proceeded with. In the latter case, the owner can be alerted to the attempted potentially fraudulent transaction and given the GPS co- ordinates of the user. Moreover, in this instance, the owner may elect to then report the plant as stolen where the owner cannot verify the location of the relevant plant item. A Theft Report is then generated in the usual manner.

The system and method of the invention therefore transforms data relating to plant into an identifiable fingerprint unique to individual assets such as plant and the like. Using the fingerprints, the method and system of the invention facilitates the rapid and efficient notification of police, port authorities, auction rooms, insurance companies and other bodies of the theft of an asset in real time. Accordingly, the likelihood of cross-border movement and sale of stolen assets is reduced and the likelihood of asset recovery increased.

GPS positioning technology in combination with the unique fingerprint of each asset also facilitates the immediate location of assets to prevent fraudulent sales and the reporting of stolen assets.

Moreover, the method and system of the invention rewards and facilitates accurate record keeping of assets thereby further increasing the likelihood of stolen asset recovery. Similarly, the method and system of the invention acts as a theft deterrent due to the increased likelihood of detection and asset recovery.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments herein described which may be varied in construction and detail without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A security system for tracing an asset comprising:

a database hub for receiving characterising data on the asset from a user; a data file creating function for recording the characterising data in a data file to uniquely identify the asset and

a theft reporting function for reporting the asset as stolen, the security system being co-operable with third parties to facilitate the identification and recovery of a stolen asset.

2. A security system as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the security system is web- based.

3. A security system as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the security system is communicable online with the third parties.

4. A security system as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 3 wherein the third parties are selected from the group comprising other users, law enforcement agencies, custom control agencies and insurance companies.

5. A security system as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 4 wherein the security system further comprises a data file quality assessment function.

6. A security system as claimed in Claim 5 wherein the data file quality assessment function is adapted to generate a star quality rating.

7. A security system as claimed in Claim 5 or Claim 6 wherein the data file quality assessment function is adapted for use in determining insurance premiums for the plant or equipment characterised in the data file.

8. A security system as claimed in any of Claim 1 to 7 wherein the security system further comprises a for sale function for plant or equipment.

9. A security system as claimed in Claim 8 wherein the for sale function is communicable online with external advertising websites.

10. A security system as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 9 wherein the security system further comprises a for hire function for plant or equipment.

1 1. A security system as claimed in Claim 10 wherein the for hire function is communicable online with external advertising websites.

12. A security system as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 1 1 wherein the security system is accessible via a user mobile device.

13. A security system as claimed in claim 12 wherein the security system is adapted to record the GPS co-ordinates of the mobile device.

14. A security system as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 13 wherein the asset comprises plant.

15. A security system as claimed in Claim 14 wherein the characterising data is selected from the group comprising a VIN number, a PIN number, an engine number, a front axle number, a rear axle number, a fleet number, a registration plate number, a chassis number, a plant make and a plant model.

16. A security system as claimed in Claim 15 wherein the characterising data further comprises a photographic record of the plant.

17. A security system as claimed in Claim 15 or Claim 16 wherein the

characterising data further comprises markings unique to the plant.

18. A method for tracing an asset comprising:

19. A method as claimed in Claim 18 wherein the characterising data is received via the internet on a website and the data file is communicated to the third parties via the internet.

20. A method as claimed in Claim 18 or Claim 19 wherein the characterising data is received via a mobile device on a website and the data file is communicated to the third parties via the mobile device.

21. A method as claimed in Claim 20 wherein the mobile device comprises a smartphone.

22. A method as claimed in any of Claims 18 to 21 further comprising the step of assessing the quality of the data file.

23. A method as claimed in Claim 22 further comprising generating a star quality rating for the data file.

24. A method as claimed in any of Claims 18 to 23 wherein the asset comprises plant.

25. A method as claimed in Claim 24 wherein the characterising data is selected from the group comprising a VIN number, a PIN number, an engine number, a front axle number, a rear axle number, a fleet number, a registration plate number, a chassis number, a plant make and a plant model.

26. A method as claimed in Claim 25 wherein the characterising data further comprises a photographic record of the plant.

27. A method as claimed in Claim 25 or Claim 26 wherein the characterising data further comprises markings unique to the plant.

28. A computer readable medium containing program instructions for causing a computer to perform a method for tracing an asset comprising: