The VIN is like a social security number or a serial number for one’s vehicle, but it may not be as unique as it should be if owners aren’t careful to protect their used cars in New Jersey.

Scammers may break into used cars to steal documentation and VIN plates of one car. An owner may notice the break-in, but not report it because nothing looks amiss.

The problem occurs when the thieves then steal another car, and put the documentation into the second vehicle. It now appears to be a clean car, with no issues and is often passed off unknowingly to consumers.

“A Cadillac Escalade was stolen out of Canada,” Detective Scott Robideau of the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles told the Kennebec Journal. “There were actually two or three of those vehicles with that VIN registered.”

And while buyers should ask a reputable inspector to check for hidden VIN locations to limit the possibility of buying a cloned car, owners of used cars in New Jersey and other states should report break-ins to limit the need for future interviews from law enforcement, reported the paper.