QCOSTARICA — Cell phone theft in Costa Rica is not new. What is, is the “criminal combo” where the victims are not only left without their phone but also lose money transferred through the Sinpe system.
Francisco Velázquez, head of the theft section of the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ), explained that they have identified cases where the criminals make transfers to third parties and others where they send the money to themselves.
The situation worsens when people do not use the phone’s blocking mechanisms, such as fingerprint or facial recognition.
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“They go directly to the applications. They go to the conventional SMS messaging system and immediately make the Sinpe to the numbers,” Velázquez explained.
Although the OIJ acknowledges that there may be unreported cases, the monthly average for reports of this double robbery is between 9 and 10.
As to the amounts stolen, it depends on the limits set by each bank. This makes the complaints range from small amounts to as much as ¢500,000.
How to protect the Sinpe Móvil?
The main recommendation in case of a stolen phone is to promptly block the bank. Additionally, for everyday use, it is also advised to have a second verification step for Sinpe Móvil transactions as a precautionary measure.
“The safest thing so far that we have detected is that when you get a SIM car for personal use and you are going to register it as Sinpe, generate the pin for the chip directly,” noted Velázquez.
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The OIJ adds the recommendation to put a pin on the respective chip. This is because another criminal method is to steal the SIM card from the phones.
The other recommendation is more related to the provider, so that one as a user verifies which banks have the most secure platforms.
An entire organization dedicated to stealing phones
According to the OIJ, until recently, the most common method for stealing cell phones was the “careless” user method.
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This method has changed due to the degree of perfection that criminals have developed, giving rise to a structure called “opportunity of the offender”, where they operate much more systematically to capture victims.
“There are people who work alone. There are duos and there are also trios and we have even seen in videos where up to 5 people work (together),” Velázquez explains.
A push or bump distracts the victim allowing criminals to do their thing.
“They use distraction techniques such as bumping or pushing someone while they navigate through a crowd. This causes the intended victim to become distracted and focus solely on that interaction, leaving them vulnerable. This is when the thieves take advantage and steal cell phones, whether from pants pockets, handbags, or backpacks,” Velázquez explained.
OIJ data for this year, to September 2024, indicates that the highest number of cell phone thefts in the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM) are in San José center, followed by the cantons of Desamparados, Montes de Oca (San Pedro), Goicoechea, Tibás, Escazu, Santa Ana, Curridabat, Alajuelita, Moravia, Coronado, Aserri, and Mora (Cuidad Colon).
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