Slowly but surely general security
is steadily improving. More cameras and more
electronic capability as loopholes are systematically shut out. Here we have the addition of sprays that
nicely identify a perpetrator with markers good for months.
No one expects to make security bullet
proof but we are no longer that far away.
The advent of personal cameras everywhere has made public criminal
behavior effectively impossible to hide and run away from. Smash and grab is no longer easy, nor is a
simple hold up as this shows.
Recall that bank robberies are no
longer common at all and not even very successful.
It has been a long slow process
to secure our world but incrementally it has been getting better.
DNA McSpray to foil thieves - McDonalds to use new anti-theft spray
From: The Sunday
Telegraph
January 08, 2012 8:35AM
I'm not lovin' it - the
SelectaDNA spray remains on clothes for up to six month and glows under UV
light. Picture: Courtesy of SelectaDNA
McDONALD'S restaurants are fighting back against thieves by blasting
suspected robbers with an invisible DNA spray as they attempt to flee.
The spray, which remains on the suspect's skin for two weeks and on
clothes for up to six months, has been introduced in some of the chain's
busiest NSW stores, including those at Parramatta, Granville, Auburn, Lidcome,
Kingsford and Wollongong, reported The Daily Telegraph.
If the SelectaDNA "forensic marking" spray proves successful
in apprehending bandits, McDonald's will introduce the system across all its
780 Australian outlets.
Developed in the United Kingdom
by a police officer and a chemist, the spray has been used by McDonald's
outlets in Britain and Europe .
Each outlet keeps the details of its distribution a close secret, but
one McDonald's restaurant in The Netherlands installed above the
main door an orange device which was electronically linked to a panic alarm
system. Staff could activate the device in an emergency.
You have been warned, the SelectaDNA warning sign telling intruders the
glowing DNA spray is in use. Picture: Courtesy of SelectaDNA
"Once there has been a security breach, the hi-tech spray unit
will douse fleeing robbers with an invisible, synthetic DNA solution,"
McDonald's Australia 's
chief restaurant support officer, Jackie McArthur, said.
"The solution is invisible to the naked eye and unique to each
location. It stays on clothing for up to six months and on skin for up to two
weeks."
Using a UVA light, police can see the markings left by the system and
link the offender back to the scene.
The spray contains a synthetic DNA strand composed of 60 variable
chromosomes, said SelectaDNA director David Morrissey.
"SelectaDNA is non-toxic, non-allergenic and perfectly safe to
deploy. It meets all Australian standards," he said.
Theft is a serious problem for fast-food outlets such as McDonald's,
which has high cash turnover, multiple entry and exit points and more than
85,000 staff who often work through the night at truck-stops and other remote
places.
In a single week in September, two hold-ups occurred at a McDonald's
outlet at Merrylands in Sydney 's
west.
"Crime can occur anywhere at any time, which is why our extensive
safety and security protocols are in place at every restaurant throughout the
entire day," Ms McArthur said.
"These locations are some of our busiest, so it makes sense to try
out the new technology here.
"McDonald's already has a range of security measures, including
CCTV, strict security protocols, intensive training, and consultative working
relationships with local police."
This is the first time the system will be used in Australia , and
although its marketers claim an "85 per cent crime reduction" rate,
the proof of its worth is not yet clear.
SelectaDNA trades on a "DNA fear factor," claiming the system
is more about prevention than arrests.
Scores of law-enforcement agencies in the UK ,
including Surrey Police, have handed out the
spray kits so residents can mark their property, and it has been widely used by
schools and businesses.
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