$926

lmaooo we've all been there😖

hmm, these are only my opinions (and some pet peeves), so they won't be one size fits all tips. but yeah

don't over-act and draw any attention - i've seen people make a big show out of checking their phone and having a loud fake phone conversation in order to seem natural in a store. i've also seen posts where the op recommends pretending that someone called you to say that a loved one got in a car accident so you can exclaim in horror and rush out of the store. or another post where someone wanted to see if the security towers worked so they "accidentally" took an item too close to the towers to set them off, then ran back into the store like 'omg sorry!!' like, most customers are quiet and minding their own business as they shop, so drawing attention to yourself will only make you memorable and sus imo. it seems to be a newbie thing to overdo the customer act out of nerves

acting too chummy with the SAs. where i live, shoppers are usually silent on their own and only interact with the SAs when approached or if they're having trouble finding something. if an SA greets you at the doorway (rare), they might get a smile or a mumbled hi, but not much more. if you're in a place like this then too much interaction is a bit sus, especially if your nerves make you chirpy. i had a newbie lifter friend who said 'hiiiii!!!!!' every time she entered a store near an SA and it ALWAYS got us sussed😭😭 btw this isn't to say don't be nice to the SAs, but there is such thing as acting too familiar. mimic the customers around you

i guess leaving packaging behind. this ties into the barcode thing, but every newbie lifter does it at some point. it's a red flag that your store has a thief, and we don't want to tip a store off to that

the art of casual lifting and misdirection. i worked at a topshop once and the number one red flag for spotting potential lifters was seeing someone touching merch with their hands but looking everywhere else. i get why ppl do this - when you're stuffing merch into your bag you don't want to be looking straight at it since that's a big tip off. but then you get into the habit of doing that while you're scoping the place out and it looks super sus. look at what your hands are examining like a shopper would, don't let those eyes wander so obviously. if your other hand is busy stuffing merch into your bag that's fine, but your eyes need to be fixed on the decoy merchandise for the misdirection to work

rfids, cut them down the middle to deactivate them. they've got that metal circle, right? they only work when the circle is complete, so slicing them down the middle will stop them from working. it's easy to remember that way imo, but newbies get paranoid and slice the shit out of them, which i totally get. but just breaking the circle will work just as well, and it's less time-consuming

booster bags don't keep magnet detectors from detecting magnets. booster bags work as faraday cages - they block electromagnetic signals from escaping, which is why they work on rfids and hard tags. but magnet detectors can sense magnetic signals, not electromagnetic, so a faraday cage won't shield your magnet from detection. neither will a metal box or burying the magnet in clothing - i don't think there's anything that will keep a magnet detector from sensing the magnetic signals. if you're scared of your magnet being detected, don't bring the magnet

also, magnet detectors are a lot rarer than you think. you won't find them everywhere. the way i used to measure it was 1/15 urban outfitters had them based on my own experiences😂 you can spot them pretty easily - they're slim glass towers installed alongside regular ones. if you accidentally go into a store that has them with your magnet, body conceal your magnet and leave after a brief time browsing to avoid looking sus. you can also enter and exit the store in a group if you know of the towers but want to use your magnet anyway. newbies seem very scared of these towers, which i get, but they're not common at all

you don't have to stop for an SA or LP at the doors. obviously this depends on your country's laws. i think newbies in particular become paralysed by fear and consent to a search when they don't have to. the authority that SAs and LP hold isn't as powerful as you think, and they don't have the lawful right to make you consent to a search. you could go full Karen to avoid this if you're old enough, but sometimes a simple "no" or "no thanks" will suffice. don't get sucked into an argument either, just refuse or ignore them and exit as fast as you can without running. again, leaving in a group is helpful for this since you can feign ignorance and leave without responding (don't make eye contact lol)

you can't physically lift items out of the reach of security towers. towers detect things an equal distance around the towers. if two towers are a metre apart, that is the extent of their reach all around, above, and below them. if the merch is a metre away from the towers at the entrance, that is the extent the towers can detect tag signals. just saying this bc i've seen newbies suggest putting tags/a magnet in their bun, or pretending to stretch as they exit the store with an item in their fist to avoid setting off the towers. that won't work sadly

don't over-explain yourself, it's a signifier of nerves. if an SA approaches you to see if you need help, a simple 'no thanks' or 'no thank you i'm just browsing' is fine. nip it in the bud and don't provide more detail than necessary. it feels curt when you're nervous but most customers don't want to chat imo

make sure not to react physically to things around you. if someone sets off the security towers while you're browsing don't look around, continue as you are. ignore people who walk by you, don't glance at everyone who comes your way. this is because LP know that lifters are twitchy so sometimes they'll set up nearby distractions to see if you're keeping an eye on your surroundings

blend in

look i’m sure you look amazing as a scene kid, egirl/eboy, cottagecore fairy, vintage housewife, alt rocker, etc and standing out and making conservatives uncomfortable is a good thing but NOT WHEN YOU’RE BREAKING THE LAW. wear what normal people wear. blend in to the crowd to make it harder for LP to notice you.

(sorry for shitty photo quality)

Too many notes for me, but here you go, and here:

http://www.alphaworld.com/en/our-solutions/instructional-product-videos/

spencer’s employee here, i recently made a post about our fake rfid tags and wanted to clarify what they looked like!

(well it's in a charity shop but its behind a till so eyup)

GLANCING AT THE WORKERS CONSTANTLY. from observation, Normal shoppers will smile/look at/nod at a worker once when entering the store and once while leaving. While you're lifting i know it's hella tempting to constantly look at SA's to see if you've been sussed but it's a major red flag, real shoppers completely ignore the presence of workers.

BEING SMELLY !! ik this sounds like a joke but people who lift from my store ALWAYS without fail smell of B.O or alcohol or weed etc. Maybe invest in/lift a nice perfume to blend in & save that blunt for tomorrow!! :)

being TOO nice/considerate when lifting. Im guilty of this one tbh, but I can always tell someone is lifting when they hold their items in an obvious way outstretched from their body or go out of their way to let someone know their going in the changing room in an attempt to look innocent like 'yes I'm holding these items in plain view i would never take anything!! ' Normal shoppers don't even think about going in to changing rooms being associated with shoplifting so forgetting to ask is common.

Holding money very obviously in your hand to make it look like you're getting ready to buy. from experience, regular shoppers will keep money concealed until the very last second to keep it safe.

If it's a shop with a tag sensor at the door (the ones that beep, I forgot the actual name) most people will be shocked/scared at the sound but then almost immediately act relieved and laugh it off as they know they're innocent and it must be someone around them . not reacting to the beep is a sign that you knew it could be coming (lifter) and reacting shocked a few seconds after the beep could also indicate shoplifting as they're shocked they've forgot to remove a tag.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST doing circles around the store. I'm mega mega guilty of this one. most people rarely go back to an aisle/section they've already been to and doing it more than once is a BIG sign of a lifter as it's typical that they're waiting for someone to leave their blindspot so they can conceal! I recomend searching up your store on google images to mark out every blindspot in advance so you can follow the regular direction/flow of the store when concealing as opposed to going back on yourself and sticking out.