What is The Pennsylvania Auto Theft Prevention Authority (watchyourcar.org)?

watchyourcar.org is the website of the Pennsylvania Auto Theft Prevention Authority (ATPA), a statewide anti-auto-theft organization. It is a public-safety and public-education site, not a commercial product or sales platform. If you own or drive a car in Pennsylvania and want to know who runs the state's theft-prevention effort, what they do, and what the site is telling you to do, this page explains it.

What ATPA is

ATPA describes itself as a statewide network of nearly 100 highly skilled police officers, state troopers, detectives, prosecutors, paralegals, and support staff. It is governed by a board of directors and operated by an executive director and a grants analyst.

The organization's core message is a single repeated instruction: "Lock your car. Take your keys. Every time." That slogan is the site's call to action, and it reflects the fact that, according to ATPA, nearly 50% of the state's stolen cars were left unlocked by their owners.

What the website is for

The site is built around prevention education and public awareness rather than transactions. Its main content areas are:

• Prevention messaging — the repeated "lock your car, take your keys" instruction, plus seasonal campaigns such as a summer theft-prevention push.
• Awareness of consequences — why auto theft matters to people who are not themselves victims.
• A list of the top 10 stolen cars in Pennsylvania — which models thieves target most.
• An explanation of ATPA itself — what the authority is and how it is funded.
• A "You Can Help" section — practical steps drivers can take.

There is no indication on the site of products for sale, paid memberships, or login requirements. Treat it as an information and campaign site.

Why the site says you should care

ATPA's argument for why auto theft affects everyone, not just the owner:

• Insurance costs rise. When cars are stolen, insurance rates go up and, in ATPA's words, "we all pay the price."
• Stolen vehicles feed other crime. They are often used to commit other violent crimes that impact your neighborhood and community.
• Your routine stops. If your car is stolen, getting to work and daily life quickly halts, and paying a deductible or replacing the car takes time and money.
• Identity theft risk. Mail, bills, car registration, work files, or other sensitive information left in the car can make you a possible identity-theft victim.
• Home access risk. House keys or a garage door opener left in the car give a thief access to your home.

The "puffer" warning

The site defines a puffer as "a car left unlocked, running and unattended." Puffers are, in ATPA's words, "quickly and easily stolen." The site promotes the hashtags #NoPuffers and #StopTheSteal around this behavior. This is the specific habit the campaign is trying to eliminate — not just unlocked cars, but running, unattended ones.

Top 10 stolen cars in PA

ATPA notes that most stolen cars are older, common models, because their parts are harder to find, which makes them more expensive and more lucrative for thieves to resell. It gives this example: a car worth $3,000 is often worth $5,000 to a chop shop.

If you drive one of these, the list is a reason to follow the site's basic advice rather than a prediction that your car will be taken.

How ATPA is funded

ATPA states that it does not use tax dollars. Its funding comes from an annual assessment of nearly 300 insurance companies that do business in Pennsylvania. Through that funding, ATPA awards grants to investigative and/or prosecutorial units and to prevention programs.

ATPA's reported impact

According to the site, since 1994 ATPA grantees have recovered stolen vehicles and parts worth $900 million, and theft rates in Pennsylvania have dropped by more than 37%.

What you can actually do with this site

The site is not an interactive service — there is no reported way to file a theft report or track a case through it. Its practical use is as a reference and a reminder:

1. Adopt the core habit. Lock your car and take your keys every time, including short stops.
2. Never leave a car running unattended — that is the "puffer" behavior the campaign targets.
3. Clear valuables and documents. The site advises deterring thieves by removing or hiding items, and warns specifically about mail, registration, work files, keys, and garage door openers left in the car.
4. Check whether your model is on the top-10 list and treat that as extra reason for caution.
5. Use it as a public-education source if you want to explain the issue to a household member, employee, or community group.

If you are looking for a commercial anti-theft product, an insurance quote, or a place to report a crime, this site is not that. It is the state's prevention-messaging and grant-funding body, and its website exists to get one behavior across: lock your car, take your keys, every time.