Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Anti-Theft Devices For Luggage?
New submitter SkinnyFatSmoothNeck writes "I'll be taking a long train ride in the coming month and I'm looking for ideas and recommendations on anti-theft devices to be used for carry-on luggage. The obvious precautions are always taken: never letting the bag out my sight, wrapping the bag strap around my leg while stowed and so on. But as this is a long ride, there will be a couple of nights involved. The first thing that came to my mind is a two-part device that triggers based on a specified proximity and is controlled from a remote (ie.: the device would be placed inside the bag and trigger a loud alarm if it strays outside of range). Perhaps a more advanced, albeit more expensive, device could also include GPS tracking. But beyond that, what other creative, ingenious or downright sensible solutions do you have to offer?"
Long piece of String?
Any security device would be considered a bomb by the TSA and dealt with accordingly.
Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
Low tech answer is the alarms for elderly people getting up out of bed/chair. Just an alarm box with magnet on a string clipped to person. If they get up it pulls the magnet off the string and sets off the alarm. Should be $50 or less. Clip the string to bottom of bag and hook the alarm to a chair leg or fixture nearby.
Or a GPS device with the tracker app and a tablet...of course if the tablet is in the bag.....
What about a simple alarm on a key chain? You put one piece in the bag, you tie the other end to yourself. If the wire is disconnected, there's a loud obnoxious alarm that won't stop until it's plugged back in. You know, those "rape" alarm for late at night.
Get a nice looking piece of luggage and stuff it with fish heads or something equally obnoxious. Keep your real stuff in a piggly-wiggly bag.
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
this is what works for me: hideously ugly and decrepit luggage. Since 1992. Never failed once.
is your goal theft prevention, or thief incapacitation?
Not until the TSA finishes decommissioning Rapiscan machines.
google for "purse alarm". there are a wide variety of options for things that make noise if disconnected.
for proximity, goole all the options with 'child proximity alarm", this is probably more up your alley. Some only sound an alarm on the kid, some only on the parent with the remote, and some do both. that's up to you what you want.
final option for gps is a smartphone with a "find my phone" option. Like with the iphone where you can see where it's at from a computer. that would be useful if the bag disappeared without setting off whatever else you had watching it like a proximity alarm, or if they managed to outrun you and hop in a car etc with your bag,
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
You could try a carabiner to attach it to something; but I think that would just advertise that there might be something worth taking.
My real solution, which I use when traveling, is to budget for a loss, and not carry anything in detachable luggage I can't replace. Ireplacables (or difficult to replace) goes on my person.
Fascinating creature, the black mamba. In Africa, the saying goes 'in the bush, an elephant can kill you, a leopard can kill you, and a black mamba can kill you. But only with the black mamba--and this has been true in africa since the dawn of time--is death sure.' Hence its handle--'death incarnate. Its neurotoxic venom is one of nature's most effective poisons, acting on the nervous system causing paralysis. The venom of a black mamba can kill a human being in four hours if, say, bitten on the ankle or the thumb. However, a bite to the face or torso can bring death from paralysis within 20 minutes. The amount of venom that can be delivered from a single bite can be gargantuan. If not treated quickly with anti-venom, ten to fifteen milligrams can be fatal to human beings. However, the black mamba can deliver as much as 100 to 400 milligrams of venom from a single bite.
Just be sure to include a return address.
Take care that if its stolen it will not be bad for you.
Use ugly, beaten up, non descript luggage.
Place your valuables (cash, cards, passport) in a small bag - and stuff it down the front of your pants.
Carry a 'fake' wallet with your day cash, and an expired card or two. Money belts / around the neck pouches are no secret. If you get jumped, they'll look for them. If someone has their hands down the front of your pants, you've got bigger problems.
I find these are the perfect size for the passport: http://www.gapyeartravelstore.com/Trekmates-Microfibre-Bath-Towel-p-1027.html - and you get a travel tower, too!
Most importantly: don't panic, and don't be over-protective of your luggage. Oppurtunistic theives (presumably these are the ones you're trying to prevent) - take body language seriously.
I kind of get the feeling you're taking the trans-siberian train (or similar).. If that's the case, just relax.
The above is tried and tested personally 3x across russia, iran, turkmenistation, ouzbekistan, tadjikistan, kazakstan, mongolia, china, nepal, south america, cambodia, ukraine, etc etc etc - in buses, trains and bikes.
If you're truly paranoid there will be a theft, then leave your jewels at home (or just leave your suitcase full of cocaine at home). Also good is not being a jerk, believe it or not people are less likely to steal if you don't upset them, say with your obnoxiously beeping luggage. It's hard but some faith in humanity is not always misplaced. I travel across the US via train somewhat annually and have never experienced a theft.
I've taken long train trips. If I expect to have to sleep, I get a room in a sleeper car. If you've got the money to spend on some sort of GPS tracking system and proximity alarm, you can afford a sleeper car. If you can't afford that, lock the zippers, tie the bag(s) to your leg and dream about the day when you can afford to travel in comfort. A well-designed travel bag will be configured so all of the zippers can come together in one location and be locked with a single lock. Even my super fancy camera/laptop bag with 5 external zippered pockets can be locked with two locks.
I do a lot of travel in third world countries where theft risk is a big issue. I'm not sure if a long train ride in first world country qualifies for such paranoia but here's what I do:
1) Padlock all the metal zippers. Anything with in a compartment with a fabric zipper can not be secured. There is little point in securing a bag if someone can simply open a zipper and remove the good stuff. A lock is pointless if someone an simply cut the handle with a pocket knife.
2) String a cable lock through one or more padlocks and wrap it around an immovable object, like a seat leg. I use a cheap bicycle lock much like this one: http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___56711?cm_vc=PDPZ2 but there are plenty of options.
Security doesn't have to be perfect, just good enough that isn't worth the trouble or risk to the thief.
That said, there have been times when I would have liked something a proximity alarm: not so much for theft but so that I don't absent mindedly leave something behind.
Back when I used to fly I had a laptop case with a pocket you opened from the outside. I stapled a 10', or so, piece of day-glow ribbon to the inside and a clip on the other end. Theory was if someone grabbed the case it would leave a 10' tail behind. Never actually tried it.
Try something like this Child Guard Monitor
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Use a good lock with a strong encryption key, as the outlaws will only bother with the low-hanging fruits.
I personally use 12345 on all my luggage, and have been fully satisfied with it.
I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of killer sig, which this margin is too narrow to contain.
a sticker, saying: "there may be a killer cobra inside".
a sticker, saying: "smack inside -- want some?".
If whatever you're taking on board is so expensive / irreplaceable that you're seriously worried about theft, then use a separate shipping service (UPS / FedEx / whatever) with suitable insurance.
Cheers,
b&
All but God can prove this sentence true.
a sticker, saying: "I've thought about this, I've prodded ./ -- you don't want this. -- Thank you."
tip good some times a shit tip = lost bag
1) Don't carry fancy luggage. It attracts attention and tells a potential thief that you have money and are likely carrying valuable items. :-)
2) Try and find a hard sided suitcase rather than a soft one. A pocket knife will slice through the more common soft sided luggage with ease. A hard case makes the thief have to work a bit harder and probably skip the effort all together.
3) Make photocopies of your vital documents and carry the originals on your person and put the copies in your luggage. If your luggage gets stolen it makes it easier to identify you as the owner - assuming of course that you actually ever see it again
4) If you are carrying something valuable in your luggage then try not to open it in public. Take it in the bathroom and watch to make sure you are not followed.
5) If you can afford a private cabin get one. The door has a lock on it so you're less likely to have to worry about theft.
6) If you're carrying a laptop in the carry on luggage then encrypt the hard drive. Truecrypt is free and works probably as well as anything else. At a minimum, create an encrypted volume on the hard drive and put your critical files in there. Better yet, encrypt the whole drive.
7) Put a password on your cellphone. Android and Blackberry allows you to encrypt the contents of the phone and it's password protected. Not sure if iPhone offers something similar but I suspect it does.
8) Don't put your home address on luggage tags. If someone steals your luggage they now know where you live and also know that you're not home. Best case they break into your house and loot it. Worst case your family is home when they break in. I just put my name and a phone number.
Can't you just take out insurance on your luggage and enjoy the trip? It it gets stolen, you'll get new gear.
regards
I forget the brand, but REI carries a line of secure purses and travel bags with steel-reinforced straps and interior locks and bolts and low-profile carbiners on the straps to make it easier to lock them to furniture and a bit harder to casually snatch your bag.
Of course, they cost more than anything I'd actually put in them.
iPod Touch + find my iPhone.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
I've used PacSafe stuff many times. Basically all of my paranoia is gone when I go way over the top some times. I often use them to hold bags on motorcycles and when I just want to leave my heavy bag somewhere and keep it safe so I can do something more casual.
You can't use them for checked or carry on on a plane. TSA freaks out. You have to pack the packsafe stuff in a normal bag when on a plane.
I have no affiliation with pacsafe what so ever. I'm just a happy customer.
http://pacsafe.com/products
Luggage is rarely stolen on trains: Any thief would have a high risk of getting beaten up by fellow travelers. The situation also does not lend itself to professional thieves: The haul is not worth a lot commonly, you need to ride the train for some time (and be notices by the conductor, etc.), you cannot run, you cannot scout the situation when you can finally run, there are usually queues at stops, so you have to steal minutes before you can get off the train, etc.
So, get to know your fellow travelers and relax. In fact the only real theft risk I see is if you are overly protective of your luggage. It may inspire some amateur thieve. (Of course, money, documents, etc. belong on your person.)
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
The article image for this is amazingly appropriate.
I'm a good cook. I'm a fantastic eater. - Steven Brust
Everyone will assume your whole life is cheap and ugly and not worth stealing.
Beehives
-ubuntu others as you would have others ubuntu you.
There is 0 chance someone is going to steal your luggage if its bright pink. It's that simple.
Bring only basic items.
Clothing, toothbrush, toothpaste, and maybe a charger for the basic prepaid cellphone you picked up before you left.
Anything else is an invitation to theft, and you should consider it potentially lost before you leave. If you decide it is more important to bring your Ipad than leave it home so be it, but the potential cost to you is the cost of the device.
If your employer sends you, request a travel laptop. These are disposable, and it comes at no cost to you.
No technology will really prevent theft, especially since anything which will prevent access is also a potential threat to our friendly government, and can be impounded for a very long time.
So... travel light.
I'm a signature virus. Please copy me to your signature so I can replicate.
Travel light and ship your luggage, just keep the essentials with you.
No, handcuff the luggage to the metal bar on the luggage shelf.
Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.
Nobody would be dumb enough to be seen with that, especially around airports. So your luggage is safe.
I had a friend years ago the used a diaper bag to carry is cameras and lenses around in.No one will touch that.
Having a gun, any gun, even a starter pistol, subjects your luggage to tighter security. For instance, when I checked a rifle for a hunting trip, the TSA walked me back to a room, made sure the rifle was unloaded and watched me lock the case. Then they handed me a receipt. They pay extra attention to that piece of luggage. When my plane landed, someone escorted my locked case out to me, matched the tag on the on the case with my receipt, checked my ID and gave me my case. There is no way they would have lost that piece of luggage. I bet if my case had been lost or stolen, there would have been a lockdown and search. Lifehacker detailed that same thing, I guess professional photographers pick up a $20 starter pistol just for this purpose. http://lifehacker.com/5448014/pack-a-gun-to-protect-valuables-from-airline-theft-or-loss
I hope that someday we will be able to put away our fears and prejudices and just laugh at people. - Jack Handey
Start practicing looking dangerous while you sleep.
Ronald said nothing. He flung himself from the room, flung himself upon his horse, and rode madly off in all directions.
Shoot one of the other passengers the first night. Or, throw them off the train and say, ironically, to the other passengers "no ticket"
Seriously though. If your belongings mean that much to you, ship them ahead of time with insurance. Otherwise, keep them on your person or travel by means that you won't have to worry about them.
Never trust anyone who takes pride in being called a 'geek'....
Soft-sided luggage or any luggage, bag, purse, murse, fanny pack, laptop case, carry case, pouch with a plastic zipper is extremely vulnerable to pilfering. All you need is an ink pen or other small, pointed object to pop it wide open. Locks are of no use.
Try it. Zip up any bag you might have. A tote bag or backpack will do as long as the zipper is plastic. Zip it shut. Put on a luggage lock if you like. It won't matter.
Take a common ink pen. Bic, Pilot, whatever. Push the pointy end HARD into the zipper track. Any spot will do. The plastic parts will pop open and wow suddenly it's unzipped. Pull it open as much as you like. Full access. But that's not even the best part!
When you are done stealing your own stuff, run the zipper clasp thing around and the zipper is back like new, with little or no sign it was ever opened. And of course the thief has no need for burglary tools. Just a common ink pen. Surely that can't be used for evil....
Why not just knife the bag open? Well, sure, but this way is covert. Zip it back up and the bag doesn't LOOK robbed. And there is no knife to get caught with. Everybody has ink pens. Nobody suspects it. Even TSA lets an ink pen through.
Pencils, ice picks, nails, even plastic flatware can be used to pop zippers. Probably car keys or maybe even a coin. Plastic zippers are just bad news.
Sig for hire.
Just carry a small skunk in your luggage.You could even use a descented one and it would probably have the same deterrent effect.
Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave.
You have to ask, about something this simple... Dude, you have much bigger problems. Don't wander out of sight of your nanny.
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=child+proximity+alarm&sprefix=child+proxim%2Caps%2C201
Unless you have so little luggage that you can take it to the dining car with you, then get a good bike lock and chain it to the metalwork of the seat/bed.
I am doing this Anonymously because it is embarrassing/super illegal. I used to work as a bellhop at a very large East Coast Casino and for 5 years I stole medication from peoples luggage. It was awful and I regret it very much, but I want to try and give back in the way of relevant information.
First of all, zipper locks are a joke. Just get a ball point pen, take the cap off and place it on the zipped seam and push. It separates the zipper and all you need to do is run the zipper tabs (that are locked together) back around and it looks like nothing ever happened. The only bags that would routinely get me out were the solid plastic kind that have locking combination locks. Since they have no zipper I would pass them by for a bag with a zipper.
Also remember that I know exactly where you keep your medication because it makes a loud clanking noise when I shake your bag. If you put cotton balls in the bottle, I still know where the bottle will be because most people put meds in their toiletries bag. And then, even if you silence your bottle and keep it out the toiletry bag I will still find it because your pain medication is in a large orange bottle that tells me exactly what pills are inside. This applies to anything in a suitcase. If you don't want someone stealing your precious items, put them in inconspicuous bags. If you had to hide $10k in a suitcase the last place I am going to look in is a box of tampons.
There is a high possibility that people will go through your bags if you store them in a bell closet and/or valet type service. As employees, we know where all the blind spots on the camera's are. All you need to do is make your bag look like it would take more of my time to go through. Back in the day, if I would open a bag and see everything perfectly folded and organized I knew I could search the whole thing in under 15 seconds. On the other hand, if there was shit just tossed in, I would really think twice about weather I had enough time to make an inspection.
I will stop here, but if you guys have any more questions I will be glad to answer any questions. There are more ways / techniques, but this is the most common.
In India, we use metal chains to attach the luggage to some solid fixture. This, along with locking the luggage (obviously) mostly deters any opportunistic thieves.
Check out PacSafe luggage. They carry a large variety of baggage that is designed to be locked and secured while you aren't tending to the bag. Their main compartments are usually an aircraft-cable mesh bag with "drawstring" made of thicker,studier cable. The drawstring can be pulled tight, padlocked closed, and the extra length of cable can be looped back to be padlocked to a light pole, secure railing, or even just something heavy to prevent it being stolen without bolt cutters. The cable mesh is covered in fabric and even padded to look discreet and protect belongings. I've used one for a couple of years, and it provides me peace of mind when I travel to places like Brazil.
http://pacsafe.com/
I've never found cover that's economical and why not? Insurance has to make a profit so what's the point?
So, there's no financial benefit. Anything else? Insurers do a lot of hard work contacting police, arranging a replacement, organising disputes. However... when do we ever see these actions in detail? - or do we get a letter through the door such that we can infer (for example) that our insurance has signed over, agreeing responsibility to a disputing party without our input.
Finally, insurance is used by criminals to justify the crime to themselves.
Bad all round. Tax insurance to oblivion.
A blog I run for the wealth
and even better pack something like Ex Officio underwear so "two weeks worth" of underwear is 2 pairs, the one your wearing now and the one you washed and let dry overnight (or let dry in an hour in warmer climes) at your previous stop.
I almost took a job as an international diamond courier...'til I found out I was the replacement for a guy they called "Lefty".
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
I haven't used the Trakdot, but it looks interesting. Not so much an anti-theft device, more like a LoJack for your luggage. Just announced at CES. Has a subscription fee, so it might not be worth it for a one-time thing.
The solution you're looking for is StickNFind. Low power bluetooth stickers. Link to your phone and when the "sticker" goes out of bluetooth range, an alarm goes off. You can then your phone as a proximity sensor to track down where your stuff went. http://www.indiegogo.com/sticknfind (to order), and http://sticknfind.com/product/ to learn.
If you really want to prevent your bags from getting stolen you should attach it to something fixed.
Lock it to the storage compartment with a steel wire. If you also want to prevent it from being opened you can cover it with a steel mesh.
Things like that seem to be popular among some backpackers.
It does not say what kind of luggage you plan to bring, but something like this should cover most scenarios.
Get a sleeper and put it all in the upper bunk and close it. Works for me every time.
Why is it that most of the people that I encounter seem to have been shat from the Sphincter of Mediocrity?
Sadly, trains are not cheaper than air. Oh well. That being said, it's my favorite way to travel - even long cross country trips. Also coach seats, round trip from San Jose, CA to Chicago, IL can be had for under $400. If you take a roomette, add about $400 each way. That's not really that expensive figuring that meals are included in the room price. I always get a room for over night trips.
Rail travel is way more comfortable than flying, It's generally safer in the accidents generally do not involve the death of everyone on board. Also the added bonus that you need not worry about the TSA morons in 99% of the stations.
Why take the train? It's fun, comfortable, relaxing, and hassle free, few limits on luggage, etc.... For the most part, you will not find scum on trains. They generally would take a bus.
I have never had anything go missing while on a train. I have had stuff disappear on flights.
Why is it that most of the people that I encounter seem to have been shat from the Sphincter of Mediocrity?
From the presenter: "Flying with a firearm requires you to lock your bags with non-TSA approved only-you-get-the-key locks. This is a wonderful way to work the system to your favor."
Eighteen minutes, seems well worth watching if you ever fly with expensive cameras or computers...
(yeah, I know this is off topic r.e. train travel, but I thought it would be a handy security tip.)
out of sapient pearwood. Then, watch as would be thieves disappear, never to be seen again.
As an added bonus, your laundry will always be washed, and folded when you go to retrieve it.
A sensible traveller does not take anything valuable with them. Buy some cheap clothes, a disposable watch etc and put in a cheap bag. Put important things like passport and credit cards in a money belt. Carry a small backpack as carry on luggage if you really must have a notebook or tablet.. Get a cheap pre-paid phone when you arrive. If some fool steals your suitcase wander down to the nearest H&M and get another cheap case and fill it with cheap clothes. Claim the old case on insurance. Easy. If you take nothing valuable then you have nothing to worry about and thus enjoy your holiday considerably more.
It depends on how strong you want your security to be. While traveling by train in Europe, I generally use a simple cable lock (like the Master Lock 4605D, $10 at Amazon). It's small and easy to deploy. Obviously, a determined and well-equipped thief could cut through the cable pretty easily, but it's enough to deter the casual grab-and-dash artist. I've used it for twenty years, and I have yet to lose a bag. Of course, having said that, my next trip will be the one where I encounter a well-equipped thief...
For me, trips have a large photographic component; often it's the primary purpose for the trip. So suggesting I not take my camera gear on a trip might as well be suggesting I don't *go* on the trip (which, admittedly, would be cheaper). And even if it's insured and the insurance doesn't find some way to not pay off, I've still lost the pictures in the camera, and probably several days (or even the rest of the trip) of photo opportunities (can't get instant insurance payout, in some locations can't buy a new camera locally). The laptop (and a good one, with enough disk and processor power and a good screen) is a necessary part of the photo kit too.
Then again, in my old world-traveling days (1958-1994, I guess), I guess I spent over 30 months outside North America, and never had anything stolen from me or anybody in my party. (Most of that time was in western Europe, but a couple of months were in Africa.) Of course, I wasn't carrying a laptop most of that time, and my early camera gear wasn't worth stealing. But later on I carried multiple SLRs and a big lens collection to the UK, Australia, and New Zealand for a total of several months; never lost anything. And my parents never lost gear on the early trips with them, either. Are things a LOT worse now?