Morrisons accused of ‘making shoppers feel like criminals’ with ‘Robocop’ pods
State-of-the-art anti-shoplifting devices installed at some Morrisons stores are dividing customers.
The four-legged pods, which could be rolled out nationwide, watch shoppers through a 360-degree array of CCTV cameras which feed back to a control room.
If anyone is suspected of stealing, the pod will blare out a siren noise at 120 decibels – roughly as loud as a jackhammer.
One shopper compared it to the cyborg enforcer in the 1987 sci-fi hit RoboCop, arguing it was a poor replacement for human staff.
Mark Powlett, from Warwickshire, wrote on X: ‘Wow Morrisons how welcoming Robocop feels. I’m typing this as I wait for the one member of staff covering all the self service tills.
‘I’m also being filmed there because actually paying staff to work when you can just make customers feel like criminals is lovely isn’t it?’
‘There’s less and less staff. We serve ourselves, wait an age for the one poor person helping to approve purchases and now this. It’s awful.’
Another shopper, Anna Mac, said: ‘What in the name of dystopia is that?’
Others argued the pods are effectively just another CCTV device, and that shoplifters were blamed for the extra measures.
Alfred Blythe wrote: ‘I’m prepared to be filmed entering stores, from above normally but is this CCTV hedgehog so different?’
A barrister and legal commentator said the machines are a ‘sad testimony of the current state of affairs’ but a ‘necessary step to combat shoplifting which is on the increase’.
Daniel ShenSmith, who runs a YouTube channel as the Black Belt Barrister on legal affairs, told Metro.co.uk: ‘Shoppers who are concerned about it may justifiably be worried about their images being captured and stored on the system.
‘To those I would say that Morrisons will have to comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK GDPR in that their personal data must be stored securely and only for as long as necessary – typically 30 days in situations such as this.
‘Those who wish to obtain their data may do so by way of a Data Subject Access Request. Morrisons will be able and indeed obliged to obscure third parties from the footage.
‘In my view, the risk to individuals is minimal’
Paddy Lillis, general secretary of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, added: ‘There is no doubt that cameras do have a deterrent effect and we are supportive of such measures aimed at reducing violence, threats and abuse at work.’
Made by Scottish security firm Safer, the ‘POD S1 Intruder Detector System’ has mostly found use as a quick-to-install alternative to permanent CCTV systems in temporary premises like building sites.
It’s thought to be the first time the devices have been used in a supermarket.
Morrisons says it trialled the pods in a ‘handful’ of stores over Christmas and is reviewing whether to install them across the country.
A spokesperson added: ‘The aim of this was to deter crime while also helping to ensure the safety of our colleagues and customers.’
Safer Group described its device as a ‘cutting-edge, intruder detection system to enhance the safety and security of Morrisons’ stores’.
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