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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?"
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.....
this is what works for me: hideously ugly and decrepit luggage. Since 1992. Never failed once.
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.
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.
Better yet, just use old grungy looking luggage. If your luggage appears to be the least valuable luggage on the train, it will be stolen last. I tend to dress down when I travel because it is more comfortable and it makes me a less desirable target. OK, mainly because it is comfortable :)
Perhaps you weren't listening. He just wants to use a remote control with wireles receiver in the luggage. How could that raise a red flag?
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
I've traveled enough to know that most people are really too obvious. You don't need to outrun the lion. You just need to be faster than the slowest person.
I've been with people who flash money. When you pay for something, make sure it looks like you aren't carrying much. Don't pull out your whole bank roll and peel off a bill. Keep your money in two piles and don't ever show the one with the big bills in public.
Don't act like a confused tourist. My parents used to stand on a busy street corner and unfold a map. Everyone for blocks in four directions could see the map. Even at 15 I knew we were an instant target. You can walk 20 feet down one block and lean against a wall, so far fewer people will see you. Also, have you map folded right before hand so you can consult it without opening the entire thing in public. That said, don't dodge down an alley to check your map. You want some people to see you for safety.
Don't act lost even when you are. Instead of turning around, just walk around the block or go in a shop and leave going the back the other way, fewer people will notice.
Thieves also work in groups. Be careful when there's an unreasonable distraction. That guy who won't leave you alone might have someone else taking your bag.
Watch out for strange touches. If someone bumps your backpack or pulls at your clothes they may be trying to hide other things. I've scared a few pickpockets by spinning around at minor touching.
Assume you will be robbed and minimize your losses. I've been lucky, but most people I know have been hit once or twice.
If you suspect someone is a shark, they probably are. Once they target you, they can be hard to shake.
Sorry for the rambling, but in short, just make sure you aren't the dumbest tourist in the area and you'll be fine.
Don't use luggage with zippers at all.
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.
If he's taking a multi-day train trip, it's almost certainly not in the US (may God have mercy on his soul if it is).
I have no idea where the OP is traveling but there are plenty of long distance Amtrak train trips in the US - and a lot of them across scenic routes. I have done Chicago to San Francisco on the California Zephyr and the views of the rockies were stunning. I've also done San Francisco - LA - San Diego which while it was only an single day trip again had stunning views along the way.
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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
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.
I always found an unusual odor puts off most people, including airport security. I was once pulled over at Charles de Gaul, on my way home, opened the case and was quickly told to be on my way. I had been traveling for some time and hadn't had any opportunity to launder stuff for a while.
You can actually buy those in many airports. They are called luggage alarms, you put one part in your luggage and keep the other bit on your person. If they ever get too far apart one or both start beeping. Low power, low range radios are used.
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SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
You are exactly correct on this. I once spent some time in the Amazon in Equador. Was rained on for days. On trip back out of jungle, caught jungle bus (rooftop ride), only to encounter the bridge was washed out. Hiked 17km with all my gear to get to Tena. Literally caught bus to Quito by running in front of it. Hoped on bus for a long bus ride. Two hours later bus was stopped at army checkpoint where we had to show our papers. Everyone was allowed back on the bus but me. Spent 4 hours standing next to guys with machine guns (furious staring does not harm them), until I was able to stop a pickup truck and hired the guy to take me to Quito for $10US. Spent the night in the back of the truck lying on sacks of coffee beans watching the Southern Cross as we drove through the Andes Mountains. He dropped my off at Quito International at 6am with minutes to spare. Had time to shrink wrap my backpack and board my flight - still in the same clothes and boots I was wearing in the jungle the day before. When I landed in Panama you have to push a red button at customs. If the light flashes green you go on your way. If it flashes red you get searched. I got red. They made me take the shrink wrap off my backpack, as they were asking me where I had been and what I was doing. Long story short, she only got the zip on the pack open about six inches, as I was explaining I had just came from the Amazon Jungle. She was getting a good whiff of me by then too. The zip was quickly done right back up and I was sent on my way.