Over the last ten years DACRC have pioneered visualisation of the way perpetrators engage in crime, in order to help designers and the public to do their best to anticipate and design against crime. The phrase ’perpetrator technique’ is primarily used by law enforcement officers and those from the crime prevention community to describe the characteristic ways criminals commit crime. It suggests that there are patterns and styles to how crimes are commonly committed. The phrase modus operandi (often abbreviated MO) meaning ‘mode of operation’ is used in common English to mean something similar i.e. the habits of manner of working, the method of operating or functioning of criminals as well as individuals.

We list perpetrator techniques for two reasons:

1. so individuals can familiarise themselves with them and figure out how best to behave safely in public places, where some scam crimes linked to bag and bike theft, are common;

2. so designers can understand them to figure out how to design against them.

Below we visualise common bag theft and bike theft perpetrator techniques as separate case studies.

Bike Theft Perpetrator Techniques