I just emailed Naomi privately; this part is for the SR list:

1)  Any type of mobile device or anything that looks like one, including tablets, is BIG BIG BIG mugging fodder these days, not just because the devices can be resold, but because they contain personal data that can be used to steal your identity or at least hijack your bank account.   Put your devices away before you leave SR, do not let them be seen when you're on the street, EVEN in the DAYtime.  In the Mission in SF, people get robbed of their mobiles in the middle of the day: grab-and-run, often getting pushed down or otherwise injured in the process.

2)  ALWAYS go out in pairs, never alone.  This was a feminist issue when I was in college, it was called "Take Back the Night".  These days it's for guys as well as gals: everyone, even if you're built like a sanitation worker and don't think anyone would ever want to mess with you: the badguys have weapons. 

3)  If someone is going to be leaving after dark, always offer to accompany them to whatever means of transport they use and wait with them until they are moving (until they are on the road or on the bus or in the paid area of BART etc. etc.).  Take another person with you so there are three going out and two coming back.  Just DO IT as a matter of routine. 

4)  We need cameras outside.  I can get Panasonic outdoor cameras at wholesale if SR or the building owner wants to buy them, they run on Cat5 cable, power-over-ethernet, and can go into a network.  I might have a line on a couple of oldschool outdoor cameras in big housings that are highly visible and may help as a deterrent, though they are not network cameras.  Ideal case, we put it online so any SR member can watch the outside of the building, and it becomes normal to keep the camera screens open while you're working at your computer.

5)  We might want to consider self-defense classes or anything else that can empower people.  There are community/nonprofit groups that teach various techniques for personal safety & defense, someone around here probably knows how to find them.  Part of it is "situational awareness": being alert about the environment wherever you are, potential risks, potential safety advantages, who's around, what to do if a risk turns into a direct threat, etc.   

6)  We need a meeting topic on security, and an ongoing discussion about it.  This topic is always going to be current. 

Enough was enough long ago!  No more!

-G.

 
======



On 13-04-09-Tue 1:55 AM, Naomi Most wrote:
11:45pm at the 20th st bus stop (at Broadway) waiting for the 72M.

So, ah, watch yourselves.

I was transferring my iPad to my backpack when 2 muggers wrenched it out of my hands and a third one maced me right in the eyes.  I mean not just a little spray, a serious "I mean to blind you" lengthy spray.

An emergency team showed up about 6 minutes after the incident, and the cops showed up about 8 minutes after.  They were very helpful.  

One of them asked if I had "Find my Phone" installed, which I did.  They activated it and located the iPad right away.  They detained 2 suspects who were carrying the iPad.

I sat in the back of a cop car as they stood under the light.  One suspect wasn't so clear to me, and I said so -- I wasn't sure. The other suspect was *definitely* the girl who maced me, so I said so.  They let the guy go and took the girl in.  That felt really weird.

I'm going to write this up in more detail on my blog, because my face feels like it's melting off so I'm not going to be able to sleep anyway. 

What a strange experience.

--
Naomi Theora Most
naomi@nthmost.com
+1-415-728-7490

skype: nthmost

http://twitter.com/nthmost 


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