I keep telling people over and over again–if you are being hijacked do NOT get in the car with your attackers.  Under no circumstances do you get in the car.  They will only take you someplace where you are at their mercy.  In this case the victim was lucky:  they only took her to ATM’s to get more money than she had in her pocket.  But what if they wanted more?  What if she didn’t have an ATM account?

According to the story she was kidnapped about 1 p.m. from a parking lot in a shopping mall.  If you aren’t safe there, what makes you think you will be safer if you go with the kidnappers?  You aren’t!  Don’t go with him/them!

Fer Pete’s Sake!  You put your wallet in your pocket & then you pat the wallet to be sure it’s there.  What a great signal that a) “Hey Guys!  Guess where my wallet is today?” and b) “I’ve got something I’m worried about losing” so it must be worth stealing.  Good Job!  In case any reader doesn’t get the sarcasm, don’t do that!

If you are carrying a lot of bags and packages, you won’t notice if one wanders off will you?  Worse yet, you could lose your wallet or purse and never notice.  The moral of the story–consolidate, consolidate, consolidate!  Don’t be like the shopper in the comic books, so overburdened you have no idea what’s going on around you.

To avoid losing everything, divide your money into separate stashes and needs. In one secure place, carry enough money to cover that day’s expenses; if you are going to a market or busy place where you will be dipping into your wallet often, carry only what you need. Elsewhere (around your neck or in a sock, for example), place a second pile of money and other valuables.

If you decide to carry out my previous suggestion and use a money belt or neck pouch, conceal it under your clothes and leave it there. Several times I’ve seen people dip in to the concealed pouch in front of the whole world.  If any potential thief is watching, you just told her/him/it where to find the good stuff.

If it is your habit to use handbag, hold it close to your body, not dangling from a hand or wrist.  Personally, I don’t think much of looping it over 1 shoulder either.  Any of these 3 ways to carry a handbag makes it easy to snatch.  I suggest wearing your bag diagonally, like a messenger bag, and carry it to one side or the front.  [If you carry it behind you, someone on the bus or subway could open it and you would never notice.]

It can look disgusting but some people recommend that you don your shoulder bag before you put on your coat.  I’m not in favor of it myself because it inhibits other key protective abilities (like running) but you should know what others have suggested.

Something I just noticed when I was looking at YouTube.  There are a lot of people out there who are fighting or looking for fights for fun.  Or looking to “Bitchslap” people at random for fun.  Nothing new there. But now there’s a modern twist:  they bring along a film crew to record the action and put it on YouTube.  So, after looking at a bunch of these things here’s a new tip:  if you see a bunch of people around you pointing there cell phones or cameras at you, look around.  There’s a reason and it could be an unpleasant one.