Metal detectors at Walmart?

[Hotdog 7]

So I don't shop at Walmart too often, but today was one of the rare occasions I decided to stop in to get something. I was carrying my Glock 48 w/ Holosun EPS at 3:30 IWB. I went in through the main (grocery) entrance and when I went passed the anti-theft detectors; they beeped at me! What made this odd was that it only did one beep, as opposed to the succession of beeps it does when an anti-theft tag goes through the detection zone. I figured it was probably some kind of system glitch and went on about my day. I went and made my purchase and went back out the same way I came in. Once again, when I crossed through the threshold of the anti-theft detectors, they made one lone beep. Traditionally, these devices operate by scanning for RFID, which the anti-theft tags transmit. When one of those tags makes their way into the zone of the detectors, it triggers the alarm. I've never triggered these alarms before while carrying. I am 100% certain that I didn't unknowingly have an RFID tag on me.

This lead me to wonder, did Walmart get devices that have metal detecting capabilities? I do remember seeing my Walmart having a technician working on these devices when I last visited 6-8 weeks ago. Perhaps there is some new tech which allows them to be dual purpose? Just wanted to see if anyone has experienced something similar. I may go back in a couple of days to experiment and see if I can get it to happen again. If it does, I'll remove my gun and pass through them and see what happens.

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[oremike]

Might just be a people counter.

 

[L84Cabo]

Except how would the scanners tell the difference between a gun and a dozen other metal things people carry...keys, knives, flashlights, belt buckles, etc?

 

[Richo877]

May be you were abducted by aliens and got a chip implant?

 

[Member 53867]

Maybe they installed Gaydar?


j/k

 

[Stomper]

May be you were abducted by aliens and got a chip implant?

Oh boy, ANOTHER chip insertion!

 

[SavageGerbil]

So I don't shop at Walmart too often, but today was one of the rare occasions I decided to stop in to get something. I was carrying my Glock 48 w/ Holosun EPS at 3:30 IWB. I went in through the main (grocery) entrance and when I went passed the anti-theft detectors; they beeped at me! What made this odd was that it only did one beep, as opposed to the succession of beeps it does when an anti-theft tag goes through the detection zone. I figured it was probably some kind of system glitch and went on about my day. I went and made my purchase and went back out the same way I came in. Once again, when I crossed through the threshold of the anti-theft detectors, they made one lone beep. Traditionally, these devices operate by scanning for RFID, which the anti-theft tags transmit. When one of those tags makes their way into the zone of the detectors, it triggers the alarm. I've never triggered these alarms before while carrying. I am 100% certain that I didn't unknowingly have an RFID tag on me.

This lead me to wonder, did Walmart get devices that have metal detecting capabilities? I do remember seeing my Walmart having a technician working on these devices when I last visited 6-8 weeks ago. Perhaps there is some new tech which allows them to be dual purpose? Just wanted to see if anyone has experienced something similar. I may go back in a couple of days to experiment and see if I can get it to happen again. If it does, I'll remove my gun and pass through them and see what happens.

Check your shoes, it's a boring job. My friend used to take packs of the little strip-stickers and plant them around sticky side up to make little time bombs

 

[Hotdog 7]

Except how would the scanners tell the difference between a gun and a dozen other metal things people carry...keys, knives, flashlights, belt buckles, etc?

Metal detectors can be configured to certain levels of sensitivity. Its not out of the realm of possibility that they had the sensitivity cranked way down so it would only hit on large metal objects like a gun, but not a belt buckle or phone.

Might just be a people counter.

It didn't beep on the people ahead of me or behind me. Same on the way out.

Check your shoes, it's a boring job. My friend used to take packs of the little strip-stickers and plant them around sticky side up to make little time bombs

I actually considered this to be the most likely scenario as I was walking out. I checked my shoes when I got to my car and nothing was there.

 

[Nosferatu]

Do you have a key card for entering a building, such as what most offices use? They operate on RFID frequencies, the same as most anti-theft merchandise tags.

 

[Hotdog 7]

Do you have a key card for entering a building, such as what most offices use? They operate on RFID frequencies, the same as most anti-theft merchandise tags.

Negative. I had my keys which have my car key, mail box key, and house key. Wallet which is RFID blocking and just has license, OR + WA CHL, and 2 debit/credit cards. Cell phone, pocket knife, and my G48 w/ Holosun EPS + spare mag.

 

[Nosferatu]

Negative. I had my keys which have my car key, mail box key, and house key. Wallet which is RFID blocking and just has license, OR + WA CHL, and 2 debit/credit cards. Cell phone, pocket knife, and my G48 w/ Holosun EPS + spare mag.

Well, it's obviously the alien-impregnated tracking suppository then.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Negative. I had my keys which have my car key, mail box key, and house key. Wallet which is RFID blocking and just has license, OR + WA CHL, and 2 debit/credit cards. Cell phone, pocket knife, and my G48 w/ Holosun EPS + spare mag.

The important thing is you're losing sleep over it.

 

[TTSX]

It was your tinfoil hat

 

[Dozer99]

Walmart does not have metal detectors in their stores. The RFID scanners that you walk through going in and out only pick up radio frequencies. They can however beep when they detect a faint signal from a cellphone, smart watch as well as police and security UHF/VHF radios. This happens very rarely, but it is something that the techs who work on these scanners know about.

It's all about radio frequencies and your cell phone uses one to communicate. Do you have an older cell phone? The scanners sometimes pick up Bluetooth devices such as air pods or hearing aids as well.

When those scanners are having a calibration error they beep to alert the store personal that there is a problem and a tech needs to be called. (good luck, this almost never happens).

 

[Member 53867]

Negative. I had my keys which have my car key, mail box key, and house key. Wallet which is RFID blocking and just has license, OR + WA CHL, and 2 debit/credit cards. Cell phone, pocket knife, and my G48 w/ Holosun EPS + spare mag.

Called it. Definitely Gaydar.


j/k, again.

 

[JRuby]

Just got back from Walmart for a pet food run. Did not see anything like a metal detector. This was in Saint Helens.

 

[Hawaiian]

I am carrying when I go there and they haven't beeped at me.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I'm just waiting for you know who to sad dog it with how walmart is where rich people shop and it must be nice.

 

[Richo877]

Well, it must be nice to be rich enough to shop at Walmart. I don't have much of a budget for retail food, so I usually just have to shop the trash cans around the fred meyer deli. So far, their rfid scanners haven't set off when I carry my Jimenez ja9.

 

[edzz]

My smoke detectors emit single beeps some times, did you check Walmart's battery's?