There is a fierce competition in the grocery store market with a never ending fight to cut costs and attract customers. In response to this my local grocery store installed self checkout registers some time ago. If there is a queue on the manned checkout the self service becomes a really attractive option. The other day I tried it but failed when I wanted to buy a single chili. It was just too light for the weight to register, even in a bag. But I wouldn't be writing about it here if it was just about bad usability.
This is what it looks like:
After a few campaigns people have learnt that they should protect their PIN code from other people. The self checkout area is not a place where people can easily hang around and watch you type the PIN without acting suspicious. But they don't need to. The design makes it all too easy to hide a camera. Here is what it looks like if you bend down:
And this is what it looks like if you look up from the buttons of the payment terminal:
I think they tidied this up, when I looked at this earlier there were a lot more cables here. But still there is plenty of space for a camera and perhaps even communication devices. Criminals could even leverage the free WiFi for customers.
With the PIN recorded criminals only need the card itself. That would require some pick-pocketing or bag snatching before heading over to the nearest ATM. It could be an expensive grocery shopping, a lot due to a design without security in mind.
