Video surveillance and a case of theft in a sex shop

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They were made the following questions:
- Is there a need to get cams installed in the shop?
- How many cams should be installed?
- Which particular zones the cams are to film?
- Is there a need to obscure outside cams?
- Was it possible to avoid the theft by having stopped the thief?

Here are the answers.

Ivan Kniazev ("Intim69", Noginsk)

Cameras are of great need, the more the better. It depends on the owner's financial resources. It is desirable that filming should cover the whole area of the shop. What needs obligatory filming is the vendor’s working place (the desk, the strong box, the area where he or she deals with a client- this particular camera must have a microphone (at least one inside the shop). There is also a necessity of installing an outside camera, especially if the shop has a direct exit to the street. The outside cam should be located in a remote place.

In case the cam is obscured, the offender feels free of punishment, and the only thing the cam can detect is the committed crime. But if the cam is not hidden, this fact can rather scare the offender into giving up his plan.

The street retail zone is permanently at risk. My experience says no one will look into such a small theft. Even if the offender is found, he or she is not likely to be jailed and the damage will not be paid. In order to avoid such cases, it is desirable that shops should be located inside the shopping malls. The salesperson should be provided with the alarm button. I demand that the vendor should hold the button permanently at hand. My vendors are strictly prohibited to interfere with a robbery. You can never know whether you deal with a schoolboy acting on a bet, or an armed junkie. No item in the shop is worth the life of an employee!

Gala Vavilova (Sex shop "Crazy love", Perm')

Of course cams are needed!

Their number depends on the shop's area, all zones must be supervised. There is no need to obscure anything, while stickers at the entrance, saying the area is under surveillance, are imperative. An outside cam is essential. 

In this particular case, the possibility of a theft could not have been excluded as the entrance zone is pretty small. At the shop's exit it is better to install closed showcases.

I recommend the owners should hire two shop assistants, it proves very effective for the employees' security, as well as for decreasing thefts and also for the sake of customer service quality. And, with such policy, the sales are increasing too, while the cost-effectiveness is not affected.

Alexey Zatulin (sexshop "Intime house", Moscow, retail chain "Vandersex", Kaluga, Obninsk

Cameras in a shop must be installed in an imperative way, but they must also have a sound recording function. It is vital to know how the vendor serves the clients, what he or she talks about with them. In my shop we have got cameras oriented to the cash register zone. This is an important aspect, since there have been cases of bank note fraud. The minor reason cameras are needed is for detecting a theft. Such video recordings are rarely used to engage the participation of the police, they are basically necessary to avoid blaming an employee unfairly for a shortfall, to establish whether it is his or her fault. If the recording shows the employee could not have prevented the crime, so he or she is not to blame. As for the number of cameras... In my shop we have got one online camera, I can manage it remotely, focusing it on the shop's entrance or on the cash register zone. The entrance is under surveillance. This allows to scan the offenders' faces and to report them to the police.

Both outside cameras and fakes are needed to protect expensive signboards from vandals. 

It was impossible either to stop or to impede this particular crime. I am against chasing the thief. If the employee managed to prevent the theft in the sales floor, it is good. However, the employees are given instructions to follow, saying that in case they cannot stop the affray, what they should do is to save their life. A human life is valued much more that any item. So, the reaction of a girl who rushed to chase the criminals is pretty natural, but still, she was at a risk.

Sergey Prudnik (sexshop "L'amour", Murmansk)

Security cams against thefts are hardly necessary, one can install fakes as well. When cameras are really useful is for improving the working processes. It is possible to avoid cases similar to what happened through raising the shops up to another level, and instead of opening marginal stores, one can make a shop looking bright and nice.

The website administration is thankful to "Inspirit Company" for sharing this video on their Instagram.