Travelers beware the camera lens pickpocket
Think you’ve heard every tourist scam?
Indeed, the Canadian traveler likes to believe it’s prepared for fraudsters and pickpockets of all kinds when they vacation across the world. I mean, after all, nylon waist wallets are practically Fort Knox around your hips.
But thieves, not unlike juicing sluggers during a certain era of baseball, are always a step ahead of the game.
And here’s a scam that comes as news to us at least – swiping not your entire camera, but the expensive lens hanging off the end.
The BBC’s The Real Hustle TV program recently shed light on the ruse, which certainly isn’t one of the standard “watch fors” Canadians hear before they travel.
*Bing: How to spot a pickpocket
The scam works like this (watch a quick video demonstration here): crooks spot a camera-toting tourist who, thanks to a heavy-duty strap around their neck, feels the gadget is secure.
And it may be. But what happens next is what tourist’s don’t expect. A group of crooks will surround the target and ask to point something out on a map. While the map’s in front of their face – concealing the camera itself – one thief flicks the quick-release switch, that wonderful feature that lets you swap lenses in and out, and makes off with your lens.
At first glance, the camera is still there, and its weight may feel unchanged. It’s the perfect pickpocket.
Where crimes are concerned, you could do a lot worse while traveling than having a camera lens swiped, but given that DSLR camera lenses for Canons and Nikons can run as high as $1,600 per, we’re talking about a scam worth noting, nonetheless.
Have you been the target of a pickpocket while travelling? Share your story in the comments.
By Jason Buckland, MSN Money
*Photo courtesy BBC.
Posted by: Jack | Sep 28, 2021 7:37:47 PM
If the lens were removed from my camera, I would be impossiblke not to notice.