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SALT LAKE CITY — The stick figure decals that detail the members of a family on the back of a vehicle may be more dangerous than cute, a search and rescue group says.
Many families in Utah sport decal stickers on the back window of their vehicles that show each member of their family and sometimes even the pets. Driving down I-15 you can often get a quick glance at how large or small a family is from the various stickers dotting the windows. But the decorative decals may be giving away more than just how many kids you have.
Ohio-based company RACE Search and Rescue recently posted a picture on its Facebook page that explains how the stickers could be used by predators to get detailed information about your family.
Some of the stick figure decals detail that the father is in the military, which alerts criminals that he may be deployed or that he is often gone. When the decals show one of the children playing a sport, it may alert predators to where the child is during certain hours of the day — at after-school soccer practice, for example.
The group advocates that bumper stickers can also give away too much personal information about you or your family. Honor roll stickers can tell where your child attends school and parking passes displayed on a rearview mirror can tell where you work or live.
"Our goal is that everyone thinks about the free information that they are providing to potential criminals," Race Search and Rescue stated on its Facebook page. "Our families' safety is the most important thing."
