How to find your stolen bike—and how 529 Detective can help
Having your bike stolen is a punch to the gut. One moment it’s there, the next it’s gone—along with your sense of freedom. The good news is that recovery is possible, and faster than you might think.
In this guide, we’ll walk through the exact steps to take when your bike goes missing, from filing a report to checking online resale listings, and explain how 529 Detective—the new smart search tool from Project 529—can help find your stolen bike across online marketplaces. Fast.
Quick guide: how to find your stolen bike
Act fast.
File a police report and start an alert on 529 Garage.
Spread the word.
Share the alert with local bike shops, cycling groups, and community pages.
Search resale sites.
Check Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, and Kijiji for suspicious listings.
Use 529 Detective.
Automatically scans major marketplaces nationwide and delivers all potential matches in a daily alert to save you valuable time and stress.
Work with police.
If you spot a likely match, report it safely through local law enforcement.
Step 1: act fast—report your stolen bike immediately
The moment you realize your bike’s been stolen, get the word out fast. The sooner you alert the right people, the better your chances of getting it back.
File a detailed police report that includes your bike’s serial number, photos, and description. Start an alert on 529 Garage, which shares missing-bike data directly with participating police agencies. Every minute counts—signing up to 529 Detective starts an automated scan of online listings for potential matches. The faster your bike’s details are in the system, the sooner the police, your community, and 529 Detective can start searching.
Early visibility raises recovery chances. A bike that’s registered, documented, and publicly flagged as stolen is far harder for thieves to sell.
Step 2: mobilize your network
Once you’ve reported the theft, spread the word to your own network. Post your alert to local cycling Facebook groups, neighborhood apps, and regional cycling forums. Let nearby bike shops know; they often recognize suspicious listings or walk-ins.
Online communities play a crucial role in quick recoveries. When hundreds of pairs of eyes are looking for your bike, your chances of finding it go way up.
Step 3: check resale hotspots
Stolen bikes can end up on resale platforms such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, or Kijiji. Pawn shops have to check serial numbers with police, but online sellers don’t—and that’s exactly why thieves love them.
Start by searching for bikes that resemble yours. Filter by location and look for giveaways: matching accessories, unusual decals, or a description that sounds too generic. Save screenshots and listing links for reference.
Until now, riders and volunteers had to search manually—which is why Project 529 built 529 Detective.
Step 4: Introducing 529 Detective—your digital search partner
When you activate 529 Detective, it keeps searching on your behalf for six months—across the US and Canada. It automatically searches major resale sites and delivers potential matches via a daily alert.
The service scans public listings across North America and alerts riders to potential matches so they can work with police to recover their stolen bike. It complements 529 Garage, expanding its reach from registration and alerts to active online detection.
It’s the easiest, most powerful way to keep your search going—even when you’ve run out of time and leads.
How 529 Detective works
Here’s what happens once you start your search with 529 Detective.
Upload and match.
Create a digital “fingerprint” of your bike using photos, serial number, color, make and model.
Scanning the web.
529 Detective continuously searches major resale marketplaces such as Craigslist, Facebook, eBay, and OfferUp, identifying listings that resemble your stolen bike.
Simplified results.
Provides potential matches from multiple marketplaces in one simplified view, which can be filtered quickly to keep your list manageable and focused.
Working with law enforcement.
If 529 Detective flags a likely match, it guides you on how to verify the listing and share the evidence safely with police. Acting on solid digital leads dramatically increases the chance of recovery.
And it’s not just theory—riders are already getting their bikes back with Detective’s help
I used the Detective feature from 529 and FOUND MY BIKE!!! It was being sold in a different town with some of the components removed/adjusted (they removed our Thule Yepp seat, the deckpad, and our front basket). The police were able to assist us!!
Mackenzie Becker
Oct 31, 2025
Founder insights—behind the technology
Behind every smart tool is a smarter team. Here’s what the team at Project 529 had to say about building 529 Detective. We spoke with Project 529’s Rob Brunt, a former Canadian police officer and now Chief Outreach Officer, and Lara Ferroni, Founder and CEO.
Rob Brunt – Chief Outreach Officer
You spent years in policing before joining Project 529. How did those experiences shape the design of 529 Detective? Working in law enforcement, I saw thousands of theft reports that went nowhere because there was no shared system connecting victims, police, and the wider community. We’d seize bikes every week, but without the registration offered by 529 Garage, we would have no way to link them back to owners. 529 Detective is like having your own personal police officer working on your behalf—searching online listings, comparing bike details and bringing you leads. It gives the victims of bike crime an extra set of digital eyes, so more stolen bikes get back to the people they belong to.
How does 529 Detective complement the existing 529 Garage network and police partnerships? 529 Garage remains the backbone—it stores registration data, serials, and photos. What’s new with Detective is automation working fast and efficiently on behalf of the cycling community.
Have you seen 529 Detective make a difference yet in real recoveries? In our initial rollout, we saw listings matched within minutes that would have taken volunteers days to find. We have already reunited owners with their bikes—it’s clear that automating the search dramatically increases the odds of recovery.
From a policing point of view, what should riders do in the first hour after discovering a theft? Report it straight away. Hopefully you already have your bike registered on 529 Garage and will have the documentation you need to make your police report easy to complete. If not, you can still register your bike on 529 Garage and start your alert. The faster that information’s online, the sooner Detective can start scanning. Delay is what kills most cases. Quick reporting is still a key factor in getting a bike back.
After years in this field, what keeps you motivated? Every recovered bike reminds me why we started. It’s not just property—it’s freedom, mobility, independence. When you see a kid reunited with their bike, or a commuter back on the road, that’s a good day. 529 Detective helps deliver more of those good days, and that’s what keeps me going.
Lara Ferroni – Co-founder & CEO
Many people imagine GPS tracking when they think of finding a stolen bike. How does 529 Detective work differently? GPS only helps if a tracker’s fitted and still transmitting. Most riders don’t have one. 529 Detective works after the bike is stolen by scanning public resale listings to spot bikes that look like yours. When it finds likely matches, you get daily alerts and can work with police to confirm it. It’s designed to be accessible to every rider, not just those who invested in a tracker.
Detective searches public marketplaces. How do you make sure that’s done responsibly? We only scan publicly available data and never access private information. Our focus is on images, not personal details. The goal is prevention and recovery, not surveillance. We also work closely with law-enforcement partners to make sure any evidence gathered follows proper legal channels. Transparency and user trust are non-negotiable.
Where do you see 529 Detective and Project 529 going next? Detective is just the beginning. Our goal is a connected ecosystem where every registered bike has a digital identity that helps prevent and solve theft automatically. We’re continuing to refine our matching accuracy, expanding coverage to more marketplaces, and exploring ways to detect e-bike and scooter theft patterns, too. The long-term vision is simple: make stealing bikes so difficult and unprofitable that fewer people try.
What do you hope people take away when they use 529 Detective for the first time? Recovery is possible, and we’re all part of the solution. Technology helps, but it’s powered by people—riders who register, volunteers who watch for listings, and officers who act on leads. 529 Detective connects those dots faster than ever before. It turns frustration into action.
FAQs
How can I find my stolen bike online?
List your bike in 529 Garage and start your alert immediately. Then activate 529 Detective to automatically search marketplaces for potential matches.
Can 529 Detective find a stolen e-bike?
Yes. Detective searches based on bike images and details, so it works for e-bikes as well as conventional bikes.
How do I track my stolen bike’s location?
Detective doesn’t use GPS tracking; it monitors resale listings nationwide to identify likely matches and notify you.
What if my bike has been repainted?
Even if the color has changed, 529 Detective has numerous ways of finding potential matches for your bike. Always include clear photos of unique details when you register.
Where is 529 Detective available?
Detective is currently available in the United States and Canada.
What’s the best way to recover a stolen bike?
Act quickly, report it and register it. Tools like 529 Garage and 529 Detective give you the best chance of getting your bike back.
