And this is why you don't allow strangers in your backroom

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Heard today about this theft at a store in our district that occurred about a week ago.

A gang of three people barged into the store's backroom. They headed straight for the locked electronics cage (they must've been told of its location by somebody who either works at that store, or had worked at that store.).

They broke in, stole close to $5,000 worth of stuff, and escaped through an emergency exit before anybody noticed them.

Needless to say, LP really Really REALLY wants to nab these people. I say this is what happens when you take everybody out of the backroom to save payroll--there's nobody around to notice suspicious activity going on back there.

[Food Lady]

How did they get into the cage? We don't have to worry about it; our cage is in a locked room at the other end of the store.

[Javarod]

How did they get into the cage? We don't have to worry about it; our cage is in a locked room at the other end of the store.

That's easy, padlocks won't stand up to bolt cutters, and often easily found at the store. Another one i saw was a security cage with a wood frame and metal screening stapled to it, not real effective at stopping a theif.

[protege]

That's easy, padlocks won't stand up to bolt cutters, and often easily found at the store.

You'd be surprised how often bolt cutters are used to steal things at hardware stores... In fact, that happened at the Hechinger's I worked at. Guy came in, grabbed the bolt cutters, used them to snip the security wire off a power drill...and off he went.

But, at least he got pwned. The drill he stole? Totally worthless--it was a display model, and the insides had been removed

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

How did they get into the cage? We don't have to worry about it; our cage is in a locked room at the other end of the store.

Dunno.

The electronics cage at my store is locked with a hasp and padlock. But at another store I worked at, electronics was kept in a room with a deadbolt lock on the door.

They didn't say how they broke in.

[Primer]

Locks only keep honest people honest. DH has a lock-smithing license. I am amazed at how easily he can bypass all types of locks with only a few readily available tools, and a few minutes practice. He even bought a video tape online (publicly available) that shows how to build your own electric lock tool out of a pair of electric scissors!

I reiterate: Locks only keep honest people honest. And they merely slow down the not so honest just a little bit.

[LillFilly]

Horrible, but it happens.

The sad thing is when you unwittingly HELP someone steal something.

Friend of mine works at a hospital. They told me that one of the security guards saw a guy trying to cut-down the small tree a bike was chained to. He told the guard he had lost his key and had to ride home. So the guard went and got a saw and cut down the tree and the guy rode-off.

Cue the doctor leaving his shift several hours later, ready to ride his bike home

Friend doesn't know what happened to the guard.

[Becks]

electric scissors

I have never heard of such a thing.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Happened again today. Not at my store but another one in the district.

Bunch of strangers marched into the backroom and went for the cage. However, this time they got scared off by the Payless Shoes lady who asked them if there was a reason they were back there. They all booked.

That store told district LP or somebody and they told LP here, so the LP girl found me in the backroom and explained what happened.

Also, they've evidently hit several stores. The method of entry is a bolt cutters to the lock on the cage.

[technopoptart]

UNsecurity

Got a good one here.

Many years ago I was applying for a part time job at Sears. there the HR is upstairs, when I was asking where this set of stairs was I was given fuzzy directions. I ended up in the CCTV RECORDING ROOM ALONE . All you had to do was push this plastic red button in the wall (with plaster hanging around it where they PUNCHED a hole for it with out mounting plates) and a few seconds later someone will buzz you in. Yup walked right into a room with at least 30 VHS vcr's and no one else. LAME!!!

[Racket_Man]

I have never heard of such a thing.

try these wonderful powered devices

http://www.blackanddecker.com/Produc...Path=1570.1792

http://www.amazon.com/Salco-HWLASRSC.../dp/B000TMCYYE

http://www.mygoodscissors.com/index.htm

and the middle one is LASER guided

[Dreamstalker]

Laser-guided scissors?! WHY?

I was in a T station once, and the door to the security "office" (CCTV's, master controls for the fare gates, etc) was wide open. I believe that's how the MIT students who hacked the card system got the information they needed. And transit uniforms/patches seem to be readily available on ebay...

My mom's building has some storage units in the basement...little more than studs covered with plywood and hasps to close. Over Thanksgiving someone broke in to all the units...it seems as if all they did was pry the hasps off the doors. The management company fixed them...by simply filling the holes and using the same screws that had been pulled out. I suspect that I could probably pull it out again with both hands.

[Geek King]

Laser-guided scissors?! WHY?

Projects a straight line to cut without having to mark across the entire piece. It definately has a place when working on a project where cut line is not going to be completely hidden.

[Broomjockey]

And they merely slow down the not so honest just a little bit.

That's why the goal of security isn't to stop people, it's to slow them down enough that it's better to move on to another target. Doesn't matter what kind of security, anything can be gotten around, but if it takes them 5 minutes to break in, when they could be in and out of some other place else in that time, it's not worth it to break in to your place.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

District manager was in the store last week and apparently he wants us to do something with our TVs. They are downstairs in the backroom and too close to an emergency exit for his liking.

The options are as follows:

1). Secure the TVs in a locked-up area downstairs (not feasible in the least), or
2). Move them upstairs.

Let's just say I am not looking forward to lifting pallets of expensive TVs upstairs, and moving other crap around to make them all fit.

Oh, and they caught the people responsible for at least one of the thefts. Hot tip for criminals: don't wear any distinctive items of clothing that make you stick out like a sore thumb when committing your crimes. One of the guys had a brightly-colored Harlem Globetrotters jacket on when he was caught on camera, and was wearing the same jacket when he was arrested.