First and foremost, here's my disclaimer: this is, in no way, a how to guide to follow when trying to figure out how to steal. This is simply a hub about my experiences while working in loss prevention over the years and stories of people I've caught. My intent is your entertainment, not to teach you how to steal. Stealing is wrong, and if you are a regular shoplifter it's only a matter of time before you get caught, so don't steal! Trust me, it doesn't pay to steal.

Also, I will not include any specific details. I won't share previous company information, names of people I've caught, etc. This is simply unethical.

Finally, please realize that "loss prevention," "assets protection" and "security" are interchangeable. Different companies call it different things, but they're essentially the same thing.

Now that I've said all that, let's get right to it!

I worked for over three years in loss prevention. Prior to that I was in college and my older brother was working as loss prevention for a different company. I heard plenty of fun stories from him and this began to peak my interest. Shortly after I graduated college (with a degree in Pastoral Ministries, no less!), I went into loss prevention for a major retailer. I quickly fell in love with the rush I got every time I made an apprehension and interviewed a shoplifter.

Catching someone shoplifting is like a cat and mouse game. For my company, our work was primarily done on the sales floor. In other words, if you were stealing in my store, I would be out on the sales floor watching your every move. Some people would call this a "secret shopper" job. I viewed it as more of a predator-prey game!

Other companies catch shoplifters primarily using CCTV, or Closed Circuit Television. This can become more difficult, in my opinion, simply because they could lose contact with the shoplifter unless they had a co-worker staying on the cameras as they ran out to the sales floor to apprehend the thief. As I said above, it was expected of me to be on the sales floor during the stealing, but I would typically have at least one co-worker there with me to watch on cameras.

Fun story: I can remember two, distinct times in which I was watching someone on the sales floor and I was no more than TWO feet away from them as the opened and concealed merchandise!

I have a secret to tell you at this point- anyone can shoplift. Black, white, yellow, male, female, old, top security-clearance government contractors, young children, people in wheelchairs and the list goes on. In fact, I've had experience with each one of the above examples! The oldest person I caught was about 70...he had a full head of gray hair and he was stealing several hundreds of dollars worth of merchandise! I think the youngest person I caught was 9, but they can steal even younger than that. And in case you're wondering, YES, I have caught a guy who had a top level security clearance for a government-contracted company. Needless to say, he lost his job. He is now a used car salesman...

In this day in age, there are more than the simple kid-stealing-candy scenarios. (This group of thieves is called opportunists.) There is, in fact, a category of shoplifters whose sole purpose is to resell stolen merchandise. They are called boosters, and they steal in order to resell stolen merchandise (note: reselling stolen merchandise is called "fencing"). Boosters are motivated by different things, but typical reasons that I heard include drugs, rent and livelihood.

Toward the latter half of my tenure in loss prevention, my focus shifted more toward these boosters. In fact, numerous companies are asking their loss prevention staff to focus more on the boosters. Why? Because they lose the most money from these career criminal groups as opposed to the teenagers stealing video games. Think about the numbers here:

Let's say that opportunists steal an average of $30 worth of merchandise each time they hit a store. Let's also say they hit on average of ten times a month. These parameters are pretty typical in a lower risk market (which we'll talk about more), so we can say that opportunists cause a loss of $300 per month.

Now let's say that boosters steal an average of $500 each time they steal from a store. Let's also say they hit on average of two times a month. Again, these are typical parameters in a lower risk market. This means that boosters cause a loss of $1000 per month.

Does it make sense now why companies want their loss prevention associates to focus on the organized retail crime piece instead of the opportunist? Professional shoplifters affect the bottom line much more than opportunists do.

Opportunists will steal anything, naturally. They steal because they want something or because they can't afford something or even because they simply enjoy the "rush" of stealing. Make-up, DVDs, clothes and jewelry are frequently targeted by these types of thieves.

Boosters target specific merchandise. Their merchandise is typically high value merchandise with a high resell value at pawn shops. If they plan on concealing the merchandise, it is better if it is smaller in size, however, this doesn't always matter to most professional thieves. Believe it or not, boosters often simply walk out with "exposed" merchandise! Examples of booster-preferred merchandise include: razor refills, white strips, printer ink, power tools, TVs, baby formula, box set DVDs, Oil of Olay products and leather jackets to name a few!

There are a number of types of shoplifting markets out there. Typically, though, large corporations (like my old one) group markets into either "high risk" or "low risk" categories. Low risk markets tend to be in high-income, low-crime rate neighborhoods. High risk markets tend to be in lower-income, higher-crime rate neighborhoods. This isn't always the case across the board, but it is a good outline most companies follow.

Opportunists abound in both low and high-risk markets. They tend to steal from stores nearby. They won't typically travel long distances simply to steal because stealing is an impulsive for them. Opportunists are typically teenagers simply because of their rebelliousness. There are adult opportunists, for certain, but I have found that they usually suffer from depression or have some sort of disorder- kleptomania for example.

Boosters also abound in both low and high-risk markets. They will steal from any store they can get to either by driving (typical) or flying (for the elite pros!). Boosters are typically adults who know what they're getting into and who have bills to pay. The trends are changing, however, and boosters of various ages are appearing more frequently. Sometimes younger children are being recruited simply because they might be less likely to be watched by security (in the minds of criminals).

Here's the part that is the most fun but I need to be careful for obvious reasons. I'll share two stories with you but I'll leave out enough details so that people will not be able to figure out my old company, details of when/how to apprehend, etc. So let's get right to it!

• One of my earliest "big" busts was when I caught a guy doing fraudulent returns. I organized his case file and another store eventually caught him. He had a security clearance (which he lost!), a large house, wife and couple of kids. Total case value: around $25,000.
• The oldest booster I caught was around 70 years old. When he exited the store with a cart full of merchandise, he was on his cell phone. I brought him back into the office and he kept telling me, "I had no cell phone reception so I was going outside to get a signal." I responded by telling him, "I hope you were calling your lawyer!"

Anyway, I have a TON of stories like these, some funny, some dangerous, but I had better stop here! I don't want to keep writing and make a thirty page hub! So there you have it! This was my hub on how to shoplift or steal - thieves in action. Again, this is a hub on the "business" of shoplifting and loss prevention. I hope it has given you some insight into the lives of professional, criminal shoplifters.

Next time you are shopping at your innocent neighborhood retail store, keep in mind that there is probably someone either on the cameras or on the sales floor looking for shoplifters. For a fun game, try walking the store looking for the secret shopper. You can spice things up by putting on sunglasses and walking around with high value merchandise (AT YOUR OWN RISK, OF COURSE). I've done it before with some surprising results!

Just remember, never break the law and never do something that could get you in trouble with loss prevention, the police or management. And I'll warn you- you probably won't get a friendly loss prevention agent if you "find" them. They might be angry that you gave their identity away. So, just forget I said any of that!

Some final thoughts:

1. Don't steal, period.
2. I can't be held liable for anyone's interpretation of this hub. It's purpose was entertainment.
3. If you're thinking of working for loss prevention, DO IT. It might be the most fun you've ever had at work!
4. Shoplifting occurs more frequently than you might think...