New tech adds phone tracking to license plate readers, associating devices with identifiable cars

License plate readers like this one could soon be joined by sensors that detect phones inside passing cars. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Imagine that you share a ride to work with the same colleague most mornings. As it passes by a license plate reader, the camera records the car, which can be linked through vehicle records to its registered owner. Beside it, another sensor detects signals broadcast by devices traveling nearby, such as your phone and your colleague’s smartwatch. After enough…