Damn...I think I was sucky

[Sparky]

I used to have something -- didn't know what it was -- in my purse that made those sensors go off. I swear, this went on for a year! Every time I entered certain stores, and every time I left. This happened at least half a dozen stores that I went to often. And how many times did I get stopped?

Not once. Ever.

Most places the employees didn't even look up. Customers would though. If the employees did look up, they'd just wave me through.

It was embarrassing, so I finally cleaned out my purse and went to the customer-service counter at Kohl's, and politely asked if they could find what was setting off the alarms. It was a little tag tucked inside a coin purse.

[Evil Queen]

Go ahead and call them, inform them of the situation and return to the store (with recipt) to get the sensor taken off.

You weren't sucky, but next time it happens, I'd check my things. Just so it doesn't mean you have to make another trip.

[crazylegs]

But I probably should have gone back in, don't you think?

No, I don't. The pedestals (sp?) go off so often they are pretty much ignored these days. About the only thing the tags are good for is the sound of them being ripped off (very distinctive).

[cinema guy]

My old hearing aid used to set them off going into a certain store.

I didn't wait, going in or going out.

[crazylegs]

Memory cards (Compact Flash etc.) set them off, so when I'm carrying my camera (often) I'll end up setting the things off.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

The EAS pedestals at my store go off all the time. And nobody responds to them.

Every so often management will give us the "EAS response is everyone's job" talk, but it is always quickly forgotten. They go off so often and the people keep walking out to the parking lot, so what can you do if the person doesn't stop?

And half the time, when the damn things go off, it's due to an item from another store not having the EAS tag deactivated.

So in summation: No suck on Ree's part.

[1756GR2]

Nope, no suck. No one was tending to you even though you waited. You had no clear reason to wait longer, given the frequency of the sensors' false alarms.

And thanks, Crazylegs. I think you just took the mystery out of why my cell phone kept setting off the Walmart sensors for the longest time - it's got a memory card.

[prb]

Memory cards (Compact Flash etc.) set them off, so when I'm carrying my camera (often) I'll end up setting the things off.

Interesting... I usually keep my camera in my backpack (small camera, but in my pocket it looks, well, large and square, which is fine, but sales people and LP always keep an eye on me when they see it in my pocket, and my cell phone, and my wallet and my keys, both my pockets are usually full, so they keep an eye on me in case I'm stealing, so I just keep it in my backpack, I never get any looks with a backpack)

Alarms don't usually go off, but If the camera is in a side pocket they sometimes do, not always, but sometimes. That might explain why. It's funny though, a backpack that looks like it won't close (because of a large laptop), sets off the alarm, and employees don't even care.

[Chromatix]

Interesting.

At the Verkkokauppa here (big computer parts store, so lots of stealable stuff), they use the metal-foil stickers to tag the boxes, and for some reason they have a tag-disabler that isn't very reliable - I think it is on the edge of it's range, since it is working through a wooden desk. So while the cashiers are quite careful about disabling the tags, they do still set the detectors off quite regularly. But when that happens, they usually call the customer back and try to disable the tag properly. I've never seen the detectors set off by the actual technology being bought, so perhaps these other ones are wrongly calibrated.

It's difficult for a shoplifter to simply run away, because Verkkokauppa is on an upper floor of a small shopping centre, and the only ways out are lifts and an escalator. There are probably security staff one radio call away on the ground floor.

I should note that the big-ticket things (such as high-end graphics cards) have more sophisticated tags on them, which are a bit more like clothing tags and have to be physically detached. Smaller items, such as memory, are put in a tamper-resistant box which has a permanent tag - the box is removed by the cashier.

So I am very surprised that there are stores that don't bother to react when their LP technology goes off.

Ree's experience probably stems from that cashier simply being consistently sloppy. After you get false alarms, or a high volume of alarms, you do get a bit jaded.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

So I am very surprised that there are stores that don't bother to react when their LP technology goes off.

Ree's experience probably stems from that cashier simply being consistently sloppy. After you get false alarms, or a high volume of alarms, you do get a bit jaded.

IMO, EAS does nothing more than give stores a false sense of security. At least in a big-box environment.

The only thieves it seems to deter are unbelievably stupid ones. If I were a shoplifter (and I am not one at all), I'd just remove the EAS stickers from the package or open up the packaging somehow. People have resorted to using cigarette lighters to melt plastic blister packs off locked peghooks. Then they take the package to the fitting rooms or the bathroom and remove the item. So right there EAS doesn't do a damn bit of good.

If I was stealing clothing that had the plastic two-piece tags, I'd conceal it in a big duffel bag or some other way. And when the alarm went off, I'd just keep right on walking. Unless LP has been watching me the entire time, they can't stop me or chase me. And if they have, then really what did the EAS confirm that they didn't know before?

Like I said before, the EAS pedestals go off all the time in my store, and they are always ignored. Kinda like a car alarm.

[Chromatix]

I think it does raise the bar quite a lot, when it is used properly. It catches the merely forgetful, and most of the beginners. To catch the rest, you do need good old-fashioned vigilance.

Verkkokauppa are actually very careful about how they attach the stickers. It's usually somewhere inside the box, rather than on the outside. Then there aren't any fitting rooms or toilets where the tag could be removed without being noticed. I also just remembered that the big-ticket tags are an active type - if you remove them from the box without being disabled first, they'll sound an alarm themselves.

Under these or similar conditions, anyone who sets off the alarm is worth investigating. In the first instance it's usually the cashier's job to re-check the goods that he knows have been paid for (the exit being close enough to all of the lanes). If someone starts running (or just doesn't stop) after the alarm goes off, security shows up. (Never seen that happen - Finns are usually honest.)

It really is just sloppiness. If the detectors are properly adjusted, so they don't go off for the ridiculously common memory cards and suchlike, then there aren't false alarms. If the cashiers make sure to disable or remove all the tags upon sale, there are no false alarms. If the alarm *still* goes off, then it needs to be investigated by the friendly LP personnel.

As I say, it doesn't catch *all* theft. But it raises the bar enough to be worthwhile, *if* done properly.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Ugh, I hate the EAS machines at my store. For starters, since the store has started cutting hours and forcing people to assume multiple responsibilities (Express Cashier is now in charge of manning the Self Check podium as well; Service Desk is meant to do FLS duties), nobody remembers to turn on the EAS deactivators at the registers anymore. And the Self Checks don't deactivate anything anymore either (or only half the time).

Result? The EAS pedestals at the front door go off constantly, and is no end of annoyance to the FDLPs like Yours Truly.

Customer: "Doesn't that get on your nerves?"
J2K: "What?"
Customer: "I said, doesn't that get on your nerves?"
J2K: (louder) "What?"
Customer: *laughs*