Protect your bike, lap top and mobile phone

Cambridge Constabulary, with support from the University, will be promoting 'Immobilise' at the Archaeology & Anthropology lawn on the Downing Site this Wednesday from 12.00 - 14.00. University of Cambridge staff as well as students are welcome to attend. This takes the place of the bike and lap top coding for staff and students that was used in the past.

Immobilise is a new and extremely effective way to register property from mobile phones and bicycles to jewellery and other personal possessions. The database is searched daily by police officers all over the UK, and a cycle that was found recently in Cambridge was discovered to have been stolen in Surrey 6 months ago in a burglary. Immobilise provided the evidence to solve the burglary and two thieves await trial.

Additionally, if a mobile phone is registered with Immobilise, once reported stolen, it will be blocked from further use. Replacing the SIM Card will not make it work. This should deter thieves once they realise that phones stolen in Cambridge are useless within 24 hours of having been stolen.

Ellen Muirhead, community safety officer, said: "More than 36,000 Cambridgeshire residents have already registered property on the site. It is a very quick and simple system to use and it is free for as many items as one would like to register. It makes your property identifiable anywhere in the country.”

Although you won't be able to register items at the time, staff and constabulary officers will be on hand to explain the system and help people find and record the serial numbers of bicycles and lap tops and identify the IMEI numbers of mobile phones so that these can be registered on-line later.

If you are unable to attend, you can still register online at www.immobilise.com.