Abstract
One of the unintended consequences of technological innovation is that it can promote opportunities for crime. These opportunities not only have the potential to generate significant financial costs but can also have wider social consequences. This article considers the development of technologies designed to enable customer convenience in the retail sector, and focuses specifically on the potential of mobile scan and payment systems to generate opportunities for crime. Through interviews with retailers, store observations and analysis of shrinkage data both the potential opportunities for crime and impact on loss are identified. The wider potential criminogenic impact of such innovation is also considered and whether large businesses have a social and moral responsibility to mitigate for any negative effects of such developments.
Highlights
This paper explores the potential criminogenic impact of mobile scan and payment (MSP) systems within retail environments
It was identified that MSP might generate crime or loss in four ways: theft through malicious non-scanning of goods; non-malicious loss through non-scan/scanning errors; physical and verbal abuse against staff generated via audit checks; and transaction frauds or fraudulent use of payment wallets
Ease of Effort/Access to Products: Whereas traditional counter shopping limited access to goods, the rationale for customer self-service, SCO and MSP is that customers have open access to products and within the SCO and MSP model, the customer takes responsibility for payment with limited or no staff involvement at all
Summary
This paper explores the potential criminogenic impact of mobile scan and payment (MSP) systems within retail environments. The competitive nature of the market can be no better illustrated than in current developments in relation to mobile scan and pay systems. The competitive nature of the market can be no better illustrated than in current developments in relation to mobile scan and pay systems2 These are part of on-going developments that have seen increased customer autonomy and selfservice at the expense of formalised staff/customer interactions. The move to mobile commerce is very much connected with the emerging development of offering the customer the opportunity to use their own mobile device ‘in-store’ to scan items they wish to purchase, and pay for them using the same technology, through the use of downloadable Smartphone Apps, anywhere in the store
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