Tag Tracking :Fighting Auto Theft with a Multilayered Defence Strategy

Montreal-based Tag Tracking is emerging as Canada’s strongest answer to the escalating auto theft crisis. The company disrupts theft networks at every stage of their process by combining prevention, electronic part etching, and real-time recovery, all within a multilayered defense approach.

“We’re the only vehicle anti-theft company that integrates prevention, nano-tagging etching, and real-time tracking into one platform,” says Freddy Marcantonio, vice president of business development. “That’s our edge. We help recover cars after they’re stolen, and we also stop the thefts from happening in the first place.”

Such innovation has not gone unnoticed. The damage insurance companies, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the different police forces across Quebec, Ontario, and the Atlantic provinces have embraced Tag Tracking’s technology as an essential ally in trying to curb the surge of stolen vehicles.

The timing of these partnerships could not be more critical. Across Canada, auto theft has spiralled into what many law enforcement officials now call “industrialized crime.” What once looked like chance thefts has become a highly organized, multi-billion-dollar operation run by professional crime networks. The Canadian Finance and Leasing Association estimates the cost to be more than $1 billion yearly when you factor in insurance claims, police investigations, and consumer losses.
Behind these numbers is a complex operation. Stolen vehicles are frequently shipped overseas, funnelled into domestic resale markets, or given new identities through re-VINning, where criminals alter a car’s registration to make it appear legitimate. The risks are growing each year for insurers, law enforcement, and everyday vehicle owners.

The Technology Backbone

Tag Inc.’s defining innovation is its wireless technology, first launched in 2010. At that time, most theft-prevention tools were limited to steering-wheel locks basic etching or GPS-Cellular tracking. Tag broke from convention by introducing a forensic solution built to withstand tampering, cloning, and even export attempts.

A complete installation takes about 60 minutes, yet it layers multiple defences. The process begins with etched logos on the driver and passenger windows, a visible deterrent that reduces theft by more than 90 percent. Traditional number etching, long a staple of the industry, is replaced with advanced electronic etching that is far harder to remove. Nano-tags, each smaller than a grain of rice, are discreetly embedded across vehicle components. Finally, multiple tracking units are concealed in separate locations, creating diverse encrypted algorithms so the system remains continuously operational, making it very difficult to neutralize.

“What used to take investigators hours, now takes seconds to identify a cloned vehicle,” Marcantonio explains. “A simple scan of the vehicle will tell them a car’s true identity or if the vehicle was altered with parts from a stolen vehicle. Thieves are not able to easily wipe the evidence clean.”

Each nano-tag carries a unique forensic ID. With encrypted handheld scanners, law enforcement can instantly cross-reference against INTERPOL and CPIC databases via Tag Inc.’s Security Central. This forensic capability closes investigative gaps that once stretched for weeks, enabling investigators to verify legitimacy in real time, border crossings, or container inspections.

Layered on top of this is the Tag unit anti-jamming technology, which organized theft rings increasingly favor as a crucial safeguard against GPS- devices. Tag Inc.’s patented tracking system preserves signal integrity even in hostile conditions. Encrypted continuous algorithms embedded in each kit are updated regularly, meaning no two units are identical.

“That makes reverse-engineering extremely difficult,” states Marcantonio.

The company’s decision to manufacture all devices in Montreal ensures quality control and prevents leaks of proprietary technology. It’s a key reason why professional crime networks struggle to bypass its system.

Re-VINning: The Cloning Epidemic

While exports remain the dominant pattern, another disturbing trend is gaining traction: re-VINning. Thieves steal a vehicle, strip or alter its identification numbers, and replace them with those from a legitimate car. The “cloned” vehicle is sold domestically to unsuspecting consumers, who face devastating losses once the fraud is discovered.

Re-VINning, long a challenge in Quebec, has now spread to Ontario. From day one, the firm has adopted a layered protection approach to counter this. Its nano-tags and forensic identifiers mean that its hidden identity remains even if a vehicle’s VIN is changed.

Organized Crime in Suits

Perhaps the most overlooked element of the auto theft crisis is insurance fraud. Organized rings are no longer satisfied with stealing and exporting vehicles. Increasingly, they specialize in filing false theft claims, exploiting gaps in insurer investigations.

“Our multi layered TAG system, in conjunction with our team of experts, helps to significantly reduce fraudulent auto theft claims” explains Marcantonio.

In this regard, special attention is paid to the stolen vehicle, statements regarding the materiality of the facts, supporting documents and natural evidence. Given this reality, Tag Inc. has established an Insurance Support Security Department. “We aim to provide ongoing claims support to the damage insurance industry to maintain our relationship of trust” Marcantonio explains.

Among the services offered, this department aims to protect insurers against the crime of auto theft fraud by ensuring that insurance companies only settle legitimate and honest claims. Insurers and investigators will benefit from Tag Inc.'s secure database. Tag Inc. transcribes and maintains all background data, providing insurers, on a need-to-know basis, with the information needed to detect fraud cases. The Tag Inc. Security Department’s role consists of assisting insurers and investigators in their analytical work. Through experience and in conjunction with the technical capabilities of the TAG product, Tag Inc.'s specialized investigative agents have developed specific technical skills that can assist insurers and law enforcement with any irregularity detection.

Tag Inc. focuses its investigative initiatives on organized crime networks and professional fraudsters, particularly networks involved in auto theft and fraudulent claims. In Canada, organized insurance crime continues to be a devastating misconduct that represents considerable costs for insurers. The comprehensive TAG system will reduce fraud cases due to the difficulty of disrupting the multi-layered system. “Our advanced technology, with daily monitoring and auditing, allows insurance investigators, on a need-to-know basis, to obtain pertinent and relevant information needed for their fact-finding purposes”

In Quebec and Ontario, where fraud networks are most entrenched, insurers now rely heavily on Tag Inc.’s anomaly detection. Investigators can use historical data, movement logs, and forensic tag identifiers to validate or dismiss claims.

“Our role is to alert insurers when the theft they’re investigating may not even be real. That’s a huge differentiator,” explains Marcantonio. “Certain clues available to Tag Inc. will be identified during the insurer’s appraisal process and will be combined with other documents submitted with the claim. From this perspective, the use of a dedicated tracking profiling report or filtering tool can be an important step in a process that will require all available information to be implemented”.

Expanding the Frontlines

Criminal patterns evolve quickly. For years, most stolen vehicles exited through the Port of Montreal. Today, exports are diversifying with Halifax and Saint John emerging as key conduits, while intermodal shipments increasingly funnel cars by rail.

Tag Inc. responded by expanding into the Atlantic provinces, establishing operations in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Partnerships with Speedy Auto Glass outlets have enabled rapid scaling, by equipping local technicians to install the Tag systems.

“We saw vehicles from Quebec and Ontario being routed through the Atlantic ports,” explains Marcantonio. “So we increased our towers at both the Halifax and the Saint John ports, and out west in the Port of Vancouver. It’s about cutting off every escape route.”

In Ontario, the company added aerial surveillance with drones, enhancing coverage of railyards and the intramodal shipping depots. This innovation has already helped intercept vehicles before they were loaded for export.

Since its founding, Tag Inc. has helped recover over $250 million in stolen vehicles, including nearly $30 million in the first half of 2025 alone. More importantly, insurers mandating Tag’s system for high-risk vehicles have led to a natural decline in theft rates across Quebec and Ontario.

Integration with Law Enforcement

Technology alone cannot solve the crisis. Tag has embedded itself into the operational fabric of Canadian law enforcement. Quarterly training sessions with local police forces, CBSA, RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police, and Sûreté du Québec teach officers to interrogate containers, decode nano-tags, while using the dedicated encrypted handheld Nano Tag readers.

Real-time coordination is also central. Tag Inc.’s 24-hour command center and their in house tracking team works directly with the local police departments. These rapid hand-offs often shave minutes off response times, enabling officers to intercept vehicles before they leave Canadian soil.

In one widely publicized case, OPP investigators credited Tag Inc.’s hidden transponders for locating a stolen Jeep packed in a container. Without the system, the vehicle would likely have disappeared overseas.

Collaboration with CBSA has deepened under Canada’s National Action Plan on Combatting Auto Theft, which mandates 100 percent response to police referrals.

Success Stories in Action

The system’s impact is most evident in on-the-ground recoveries. In one case, a luxury SUV reported missing in Toronto was located within 15 minutes. Tag Inc.’s command center tracked the vehicle moving eastward. The in-house tracking team worked with the local police, together the vehicle was intercepted at a Mississauga railyard just before it was loaded into a container.

These “save-before-it-ships” recoveries are no longer rare. With drones, handheld scanners, and forensic identifiers, Tag Inc. has reduced investigative friction, allowing law enforcement to act in real time.

Version 3 on the Horizon

A hallmark of Tag Inc.’s strategy is relentless R&D. In 2025, the company rolled out Version 3 of its system in beta, featuring advanced anti-jamming algorithms, stronger encryption, and prophetic analytic modules.

Looking ahead, Tag Inc. doubles down on predictive intelligence, AI-assisted alerts, and deeper insurer integration.

From its beginnings in Montreal to its expanding national presence, Tag Tracking has emerged as Canada’s foremost defence against auto theft. Its multilayered approach encompassing Prevention — Etching, with nano-tags, vehicle tracking with multiple units using anti-jamming safeguards, encrypted reporting, insurer collaboration, and law-enforcement integration—confronts the crisis on every front.

“Our mission is simple. Make it harder for thieves, easier for insurers, and faster for police. That’s how you change the game,” says Marcantonio.