Car theft has been a persistent problem for societies around the world, but it reached a critical peak in the 1990s. This period was marked by a sharp increase in the number of stolen vehicles.   Outcome Standardisation of the immobilizer (an electronic anti-theft device that prevents a car's engine from starting unless the correct key is present) reduced the rate of car theft by an estimated 70 percent in the Netherlands and 80 percent in England and Wales, within ten years