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March 27, 2025
Is Self-Checkout Leading to Increased Retail Theft, and Why Do Some Americans Feel Justified in Stealing?
The prevalence of self-checkout seems apparent to anyone who’s set foot in a grocery store, drug store, or big-box retailer over the past few years. And alongside that rise in prevalence — a recent Capital One Shopping report suggested that almost 40% of all grocery store registers nationwide are self-checkout kiosks — comes an apparent opportunity for retail theft.
Apparently, more than a few Americans are taking that opportunity to steal.
That same Capital One Shopping report indicated that over 20 million Americans have stolen products via self-checkout (15% of those surveyed) and that a whopping 44% of these plan to re-offend. Only 33% of offenders said they have been caught in the act of self-checkout shoplifting.
And with self-checkout not going anywhere — early estimates peg the North American self-checkout market value at $2.28 billion, rising to $5 billion by 2030 — the matter becomes even more relevant for retailers, vendors, and the (honest or dishonest) customers they serve.
Which US States Have the Most Dishonest Self-Checkout Customers?
A JeffBet survey of Americans using self-checkout drilled down into several key data points, providing some insight as to which states and stores were most vulnerable to this style of retail theft.
As it turns out, the percentage of those shoppers who admitted to being dishonest at the self-checkout varied widely from state to state: respondents from Nebraska (55.1%), Illinois (52.94%), Oregon (52%), and Colorado (51.79%) were the most dishonest, while those hailing from Montana (20%), North Dakota (21.74%), New Jersey (25.49%), and North Carolina (also 25.49%) were the least.
Which Retailers Are Most Vulnerable to Self-Checkout Theft, and Which Dishonest Checkout Practices Are Most Common?
According to JeffBet, Walmart is by far the most common retailer targeted by self-checkout thieves, with 23.51% of those polled admitting they’d engaged in dishonest practices while checking out from the blue-and-yellow brand. Target (11.71%), Kroger (10.15%), CVS (5.7%), and Dollar General (5.29%) rounded out the top five.
In terms of the most common practices conducted by dishonest customers, keying in a cheaper produce code took the lead (18.17%), quickly followed by purposely not scanning an item (17.45%) and using an incorrect, expired, or fake coupon to get a discount (10.07%). Eating or drinking an item without paying for it (9.67%), swapping price stickers (7.82%), and lying about an item being on a sale rack (4.49%) followed.
Why Do Some Customers Feel Morally Justified in Stealing From Large Retailers?
In a comprehensive March 27 report from Business Insider, senior correspondent Emily Stewart profiled a number of anonymous individuals, under pseudonyms, who admitted to — and in some cases, glamorized — shoplifting from large retailers, some by taking advantage of lax self-checkout security.
First up was “Lee,” who confessed to pocketing spices and taking home more produce from the self-checkout aisle at Whole Foods than he’d paid for. “If a billionaire can steal from me, I can scrape a little off the top, too,” Lee said, calling his behavior “grand theft autoing.”
It’s not just about the self-checkout option in terms of store security failures. Jesse, a 30-something tech worker, shoplifts under the guise of being an Instacart shopper — once again targeting Jeff Bezos-related Whole Foods with a sense of intentionality.
“I never felt bad for the corporation as a whole, because it was Amazon and, you know, it was Jeff Bezos,” Jesse said.
“He just profits so much taking advantage of the little people, so if we as little people can bite back a little bit, and that’s me taking $100 maybe out of revenue for him, that’s a little bit of a middle finger,” he added.
Stewart also outlined the motives of some “anti-Amazon avengers” abusing the company’s return policies to their benefit but posited a pointed philosophical question during her examination.
“It is fair to wonder, though, if stealing from Whole Foods or returning a dress you wore to a wedding is the best way to get back at Bezos. It’s a bit of a stretch to think the answer to that one is yes,” she opined.
Discussion Questions
Is the proliferation of self-checkout in grocery stores and big-box retail locations leading to increased theft?
What can retailers and grocers do to curtail this sort of theft or dishonesty without sacrificing the customer experience? Are there any ethical or legal components to consider when dealing with dishonest customers?
Will sentiment surrounding theft involving large retailers such as Amazon or Walmart shift, or will a subset of Americans believe it is their moral “right” to engage in unscrupulous behavior when targeting these companies for theft?
Poll
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Doug Garnett
President, Protonik
Gene Detroyer
Professor, International Business, Guizhou University of Finance & Economics and University of Sanya, China.
Mark Ryski
Founder, CEO & Author, HeadCount Corporation
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Self checkout increases the opportunity for theft, for sure. However, it is only a part of the problem of shrink. Moreover, a lot of the losses from self checkout are genuine mistakes and errors.
Grocers and retailers have significantly increased the number of self-checkouts, not only increasing the odds of theft, but also increasing missed or faulty scans. The expense hit as a result is real for the bottom line.
With economic pressures and lax prosecution around theft post-Covid, emboldened customers may feel they are owed something, and they can push the limit against the odds of being caught. Hopefully theft is soon slowed with decreasing inflation, greater in store vigilance, and increased enforcement.
The loss prevention industry has been sounding the theft alarm on shelf-checkout for years. Theft is a serious problem for retailers and the financial losses are material. There was a time when the biggest source of retail shrink was internal – that’s not the case anymore. But stealing is stealing, and there isn’t any justification for it. I don’t believe in stealing with a “cause.” Self-checkout can be such a time saver for the vast majority of shoppers who use it legitimately – I am one of them – so retailers shouldn’t take them away given how many people use them. However, you must also protect your merchandise, so more rigorous use of security surveillance and additional staff monitors are required. It will cost money, but the fact is, retailers are already spending it as product walks out the door.
The answers are “yes” and “because society consistently rewards mis-behavior”. But you knew that, didn’t you?
So let’s talk about something we haven’t talked about 838 times before: currently the Hudson’s Bay Company – aka: the Bay, La Baie, HBC – is being liquidated (technically 6 stores may – may – remain open but what kind of DSR-challenging survival is that?) So here are some questions I’d like to have people talk about:
Is this an opportunity for someone ( like macy*s)?
Or is it the end of department stores in Canada?
Or even everywhere?
We’ll leave the fact that this occured under American ownership for another day (and after all, it was Robert Campeau – a Canadian! – who decades ago engineered the ship-meet-iceberg takeover that ultimately may have doomed the genre…karma s***s, doesn’t it?)
Any time there is economic hardship, on average more people believe it is acceptable to take things to survive — even if they are already surviving. I think we have entered such a phase and one which crosses many boundaries of belief and politics. There are the kinds of early warning signs indicating more deeply entrenched problems in economies. Unfortunately, there seems to be little appetite among those who are well off to seriously change things as it will take the whole of society — including the very rich — to make a difference if I am reading this correctly. It may be worse today due to country political leadership which encourages the idea that laws are made to be broken.
Due to the lack of staff supervision at self-checkout stations, theft has increased, making it easier for individuals to steal without being noticed.
In addition, some customers may feel emboldened to commit small-scale shoplifting because of the anonymity provided by self-checkout machines. Additionally, the complexity of operating these machines may lead to accidental thefts if the items are not properly scanned.
Retailers can enhance security by installing cameras and utilizing AI technology to monitor customer purchasing behaviors, while ensuring that these systems do not compromise the privacy of their customers.
As an additional benefit, providing staff assistance with self-checkout can deter theft and provide a more seamless experience for customers who may need assistance.
In order to ensure that honest customers are not unfairly targeted or inconvenienced by excessive security protocols, it is important to balance these measures with ethical considerations.
Sadly, thieves rationalize theft from large corporations by viewing it as a response to perceived corporate greed and inequality. The perception is shallow, inaccurate, and irrational.
Due to their substantial profits, these companies can easily absorb the losses, creating a moral justification for their actions. However, this viewpoint neglects the wider impacts on employees, prices, and economic health, complicating the moral narrative surrounding such thefts.
On the other hand, these thieves do not possess a great deal of intelligence.
The short answer is YES; self-checkout provides easier opportunities for people who want to steal to do so. But the idea that in some states over 50% of consumers feel somehow justified in pilfering? And one of the highest of those states is Nebraska? I was prepared to argue here that self-checkout makes it easier for criminals to do bad things. After reading this and seeing the stats (Taken for what they are), I’m thinking that maybe it’s true that for more people than I care to admit, the thing that keeps them from doing “bad” things is just opportunity.
Retailers have put the onus of learning these self-checkouts on the backs of the consumer. Within 2 miles of me I have self-check outs at CVS, Target, Smith’s, Macey’s and Walmart. With all of these variants of self-checkouts, consumers are bound to make mistakes and miss an item once in a while. One solution would be to give shoppers a $5 coupon if they complete a 10-15 minute class on these.
I agree that there should be no “moral right” to steal from a retailer. However, there are likely opportunities for retailers to show empathy by providing value every week through increased store brand offering or other promotional efforts that appeal to the stretched household.
NOW retailers ask that question? Fifteen years (give or take) after the implementation of SCO and a few years enamored by the concept of “Just Walk Out” which somehow morphed into “products in prison” behind locked plexiglass doors?
Executives aren’t dumb. They clearly decided that the reduction in payroll that SCO affords outweighs shrink potential. I remember early conversations: SCO’s never call in sick. SCO’s don’t steal. SCO’s don’t need vacations. What could go wrong?
Were they right? I don’t know. As a general rule, until quite recently, retailers presumed that a greater source of shrink is employee theft of merchandise and cash and therefore, SCO would take those employees out of the mix. Now, it seems they’re changing their tunes around the biggest source of shrink. ORC? SCO? I don’t think any of it is clear.
There’s no doubt that there is a prevalence of, as “Lee” said. “If a billionaire can steal from me, I can scrape a little off the top, too,” This isn’t improving. Especially not here in the states. But this is all very anecdotal. It would be very hard for me to call this a real “study.” It’s a bunch of anecdotes. Honestly, I don’t think retailers know where shrink is coming from.
What we do know is it’s different by category and it’s a pretty intransigent number. I’m not clear that anyone knows more than that, though the stories do change,
We have a serious culture problem in the U.S. Call it the “me” attitude, “I deserve it,” or, as Lee expressed, “If a billionaire can steal from me, I can scrape a little off the top, too.” Studies indicate the preponderance of retail theft is not from the poor, gangs, or certain ethnicities. It is from the population in general.
Asian countries have the lowest rates of theft of any kind in the world. My experience in China tells me there is almost no shoplifting or retail theft in China.
Chicago, Los Angles, San Francisco all have laws on the books that ignore retail theft under a $999 – the thieves have no fear of being arrested. I bet China doesn’t allow any amount of theft.
The way self-checkouts are configured can do a lot to prevent shoplifting. Home Depot’s are open, making it easy for associates to see what’s going on. The self-checkouts at many grocery stores are clustered together, making it easier for thieves to do their thing. Besides, it’s only a matter of time before there is technology that can sense when an item has not been scanned.
Self-checkout systems represent a significant capital investment with questionable ROI. There has been ebbs and flows with market acceptance of this standard. I believe that the next frontier lies in integrated product-level solutions rather than just improved kiosk technology. The future likely combines advanced computer vision with embedded product technologies like RFID, NFC, essentially creating a “digital fingerprint” for each product that eliminates the human vulnerability in the checkout process entirely. Still early days in this field.
These moral causes to steal from Amazon and other businesses are just excuses to shoplift. It is baloney. They rationalize their dishonesty with phony reasons that are plainly unethical, but doesn’t matter to them. People like getting something for nothing, regardless of the economy,if the conditions are right. It’s as old as the hills. Thieves are not getting back at J Bezos because he is far above that. I dont like self checkouts because it is work and not my job. Stores expect customers to work for them. In this sense, customers are engaged in volunteering their time. They labor for stores.
In Chicago, the Police will not respond to calls on minor retail theft. The thieves know this and take whatever they want with no threat of arrest. The 7-11’s and other convince stores are getting cleaned out – the smaller retailers cannot lock up the entire store.