Customers are being asked to leave a thumbprint when trading in second-hand goods for cash in order to stop criminals making money out of stolen items.Because some of you are criminals, we’ll treat all of you as potential criminals.
You won’t object to that, right? After all, where else can you go? You need the money…
A number of second-hand stores in Norwich have agreed to take part in the scheme, launched by local police.I can only imagine the pressure they put on them to agree.
A police spokeswoman said the prints would help detectives trace sellers if goods turned out to be stolen.Doesn’t this breach data protection laws? Do they cover voluntarily-surrendered fingerprints?
She said prints would be kept in shops, not on any central database - and police investigating other crimes would be able to examine them.
Inspector Lisa Hooper said the idea was to deter thieves from trying to sell stolen property in second-hand shops.‘Nothing to hide, nothing to fear…’
'The scheme will deter criminals from even trying to sell property to the shops who have signed up to the scheme, it will not affect law-abiding customers so they need not (have) fear of their thumbprint being obtained,' said Inspector Hooper.
'It is purely to put a stop to the flow of stolen goods in the city and in the second-hand shops who are the ones who feel the financial cost if stolen items are recovered by police, even though they genuinely bought the items from the customer.If the shops are feeling the financial burden, then that's wrong - it should fall on the person who sold them the stolen goods. If a change to the law is needed for that, then so be it. But treating all your customers as potential thieves, and holding their data for the poolice to go on a random fishing expedition whenever they feel like is, most certainly is not the way forward.
'We hope that customers will support the scheme and voluntarily allow their thumbprint to be taken.'
Still, at least this time they are giving us a choice.
It seems that their plans to make giving your fingerprints seem normal ran into unexpected choppy water when they tried it with kids. So they’ve turned to another despised group – poor people looking to get a few pennies from selling possessions.
Today, the poor. Tomorrow...you?
It's just going from bad to worse Julia. Surely the business owners could have stood up for their customers' rights.
ReplyDeleteThen again, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if the second hand shops concerned are all 'charity' shops. You know the type I mean - charitable to the directors first and foremost.
Unintentional side effect: criminals will sell on places like eBay, craigslist, gumtree etc.
ReplyDeleteOr perhaps it is an intentional one so that someone can complain that those sites are a haven for people selling stolen goods?
'Because some of you are criminals, we’ll treat all of you as potential criminals.'
ReplyDeleteSo should we stop asking people for signatures on cheques (or pin numbers on cards), too?
After all, by that argument, why should I have to prove it's my money in my account - can't they take it on trust, instead of treating me as a potential fraudster?
Seriously, I thought you were pro-freedom?
The freedom here is two ways: the freedom of the business to say, if you don't like our business terms, which include a no-different-from-a-signature-in-principle thumbprint, fuck off and sell your shit elsewhere, and the freedom of the outraged punter to fuck off and sell his shit elsewhere.
I'm very much in favour of freedom, anon. In fact, I'm hoping that those shops that haven't signed up to this scheme do boffo business as a result.
ReplyDeleteBecause I want to see what happens to those stores when the likes of Hooper realise that their plan isn't working. I hope it'll be something that wakes people up.
Here's interesting - the 2nd hand shops where I used to live were all fences and so part of the burglary industry. Consider them having access to a few innocent thumbprints all ready to be planted at a burglary scene to incriminate someone else...
ReplyDeleteI went to the second hand shop the other day, to get one for my watch, but they didn't have any. Strange.
ReplyDeleteI've spent my whole life having government organisations raming everything from Holocaust to GDR Stasi history lessons down my throat so as I won't repeat the mistakes in history, its always preaching to the converted and always the evil ones repeat history's mistakes and yet here is the same government using its other hand to ram down my throat their own cloned versions of histories evil mistakes. We are ruled by Nazis.
ReplyDelete"Surely the business owners could have stood up for their customers' rights."
ReplyDeleteSome of them did. Let's hope they benefit, before the authorities find some way to punish them for their temerity.
"Or perhaps it is an intentional one so that someone can complain that those sites are a haven for people selling stolen goods?"
I think you've hit the nail on the head. Another 'The Internet is bad!' opportunity for the Righteous.
"...the 2nd hand shops where I used to live were all fences and so part of the burglary industry. Consider them having access to a few innocent thumbprints all ready to be planted at a burglary scene to incriminate someone else..."
Good point! People are suspicious of the police retention of data so why would you volunteer to give it to a shop?
Answer: because you're desperate.
"I went to the second hand shop the other day, to get one for my watch, but they didn't have any. Strange."
ReplyDeleteLol!
"...and yet here is the same government using its other hand to ram down my throat their own cloned versions of histories evil mistakes."
Ah, but you see, it'll be different this time!
Don't ask why. It just will...
The thumbprint thing isn't new. I was asked to give one years ago at a petrol station when buying fuel. I refused, naturally.
ReplyDelete