Walmart has decided that body cameras aren’t just for cops anymore. Welcome to the future of retail, where the phrase “clean-up on aisle six” might also mean reviewing the footage for evidence. Citing a surge in retail crime and a spike in confrontations with customers, the retail giant has started a pilot program in Dallas-area stores, where employees now wear body cameras during shifts. Apparently, Walmart employees have been drafted into the war on theft, armed not with batons or badges, but with blinking surveillance gadgets.
“While we don’t talk about the specifics of our security measures, we are always looking at new and innovative technology used across the retail industry,” a Walmart spokesperson remarked in a carefully polished statement, which roughly translates to: “We’re winging it, and you’ll know if it worked after we’ve already made it permanent.”
