I've seen an attempt once, it took barely a couple of second and I didn't realize what I was seeing until someone yelled. The pickpocket was already jumping out of the metro and the doors closed a second later.
People don't realize how fast an experimented pickpocket is.
I’ve seen a showcasing once and the guy always made sure to target those who 1) looked like they had something and 2) who were busy with something and he’d take like the watch of their wrist, even ties and glasses… was crazy
I know right. Good pickpockets are like illusionists. You know it’s a trick somehow but you just don’t see it unless you know exactly what to look for.
It is the same thing really. Magicians use misdirection because our attention is very single-threaded.
We tend to tune out things like someone bumping into us in a crowd, so you become an easy target when you aren’t tuned-in to those things. When you get off a train in a new city, pickpockets will look for people that look overwhelmed and are distracted by a new environment.
It’s kind of cool that magicians use this as a way to entertain rather than exploit.
I always remember this if I start thinking I’m to smart to be tricked or scammed. The trick is to just make yourself the least attractive target.
I didn't even realize I had been pickpocketed multiple times when I was in Germany. They didn't get anything of value but they did try.
I didn't keep anything valuable in my backpack and had carabiners on every zipper except the one with a tiny virgin mary statue that my MIL had given me to "keep me safe ". That pocket was unzipped several times on my trip .
I remember seeing a post about a heist movie and they hired a professional to do a pickpocket scene. And then had to get him to do it again, much slower because the camera didn't catch it
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u/aSkeptiKitty 23h ago
I've seen an attempt once, it took barely a couple of second and I didn't realize what I was seeing until someone yelled. The pickpocket was already jumping out of the metro and the doors closed a second later.
People don't realize how fast an experimented pickpocket is.