Spitting out the dummy: a prepper’s guide to decoy wallets and phones.
We all know that staying safe when you’re out and about is important, and we’ve all heard the regular advice. You know the kind of thing:
- be aware of your surroundings
- make sure you don’t stand out
- don’t look like a victim
- avoid wandering aimlessly; look like you’re going somewhere
- keep away from isolated places
- don’t carry large amounts of cash or valuables
However, finding yourself in a situation where someone is threatening you and demanding your wallet or purse, is a very scary scenario! In that situation it’s important to try to remain calm and consider your options. Often complying with the demands of a mugger is the safest course of action, because right then and there, you’re top priority should always be your own safety and well-being.
However, complying with a mugger waving a blade at you doesn’t need to end the way you think it might. Using a decoy or dummy wallet, phone or other valuables can be a useful strategy to try to outsmart thieves or muggers. It might also potentially minimise the chances of being injured, or worse, in a dangerous situation.
What is a decoy or dummy wallet?
First, lets start by defining what we mean by a decoy or dummy wallet or purse.
A decoy wallet or purse is a wallet or purse that’s specifically designed to be given away in the event of an attack or mugging. It contains a small amount of low value cash, a few dummy cards that might look genuine, and maybe a couple of receipts, and a bogus ‘membership card’. It looks just like your regular wallet or purse but the contents are bogus or have little value. There are no personal details in it and the cash is only small value bills or notes.
How do you use a decoy wallet or purse?
Well, that’s easy. You’re in a city centre car park on the second floor and you’re walking back to your car after a night out. A young guy wearing a hoodie and face mask jumps out from between two cars, points a knife at you, and demands your wallet or purse and your phone.
You immediately know what to do, because you’ve already rehearsed this in your head a hundred times:
- remain calm and compliant.
- reassure your attacker that you’re going to comply.
- reach into your coat and produce your wallet or purse and your phone and hand them over.
- ask your attacker to just take them and go.
Hopefully he does just that. He snatches them out of your hands and he’s off, sprinting towards the exit. You then make yourself scarce as well, running to your car, and leaving as quickly as you can.
You’ve probably already guessed what’s just happened here. You’ve just given away your decoy wallet and phone! You still have your REAL phone, and your credit card, your bank cash card and your cash. More importantly, your personal details, like your name and address, are still safe.
When your attacker eventually stops to see what he’s got away with, he discovers it’s a handful of low value notes, and that’s all. The rest is essentially worthless rubbish, including a phone that wont even turn on! He’s been had, big time, and the tables have been turned on him.
A dummy or decoy phone works in the same way.
Carrying a dummy phone is not as hard as it might sound either. You can easily buy cheap second hand phones online, at local pawn shops, or cash-for-goods shops. They don’t actually even NEED to be charged up. You may even have a drawer somewhere at home that has a couple of old phones in it. Most families do these days.
Pros and cons of carrying dummies
This dummy phone strategy can also pay off big time for children or teenagers, who more and more often are being targetted specifically for their phone. Muggers often see them as easy targets.
One down side to using this strategy means you carrying two wallets or purses, and two phones. You might think this is too much for the little chance there is of being mugged. However, you might think this is a workable strategy you really need to adopt. The choice, as always, is your own.
Overall, carrying a decoy wallet, purse, and / or phone can be a useful strategy to try to outsmart muggers and potentially walk away from a dangerous situation. However, it’s important to recognize that there is no guarantee that this approach will work all the time, every time! You should only use a decoy if you feel comfortable and confident doing so, and you’re reasonably certain you could pull it off in a crisis.
You may also be interested in:
Resisting Invasion: The Molotov Cocktail
Prepping: Survival Planning & Doomsday Prepping
