Surveillance in supermarkets is increasing. Certain behaviors at the funds will now be directly the subject of an alert.
Automatic cases are very practical in supermarkets. They often save the tail and save time, especially when the customer buys few items. At the end of 2023, 71% of large areas were equipped with it, according to a Nielseniq study, reported by RTLallowing to increase the number of boxes available simultaneously. For supermarkets, this limits costs, with a single person who guides customers and governs rotation. Some stores also use them to open Sunday, without a cashier.
If the automatic funds seem to have many advantages, they are also more conducive to flights and frauds. Some customers try to hide products or not to scan them. The managers of large areas do not allow themselves to be done. The group Les Mousquetaires, owner of Intermarché, decided to retaliate. The brand is, in fact, setting up a system developed by Diebold Nixdorf, using artificial intelligence. It allows you to scrutinize customer behavior in real time. To respect their privacy, the tool blurred the face and the videos are only preserved briefly. Customers are also informed of their presence.
During a test phase implemented in the spring of 2024 in the Farlède intermarché, in the Var, fraud dropped from 3% to less than 1%, allowing a saving of 12,000 euros over 10 months. Employees also needed less to intervene. As explained France Bleuthe cameras were placed in this store above the four payment terminals and filmed the hands of customers who scanned their products. “We make the difference between intentional fraud and non-intentional fraud,” said Laurent Hugou, director of Intermarché La Farlède.
This device could detect around twenty fraudulent scenarios, such as uncannated articles, those hidden under clothing, tampered barcodes … But some ommels, some blunders and harmful gestures can also have the machine tickled, because it is suspect . This is particularly the case due to stacking your articles when scanning them, which can be done mechanically but also with a small idea behind the head.
If an anomaly is detected, a message, such as “are you sure you have forgotten anything?” is displayed on the terminal to invite the customer to check their items. A small alert not really annoying for distracted customers who do not have a bad intention. But if the problem is not resolved, store staff are immediately contacted and intervenes.
Following the success of the test, Intermarché plans to gradually extend this system to all of its stores in April 2025. This may also concern Clean and Bricomarché, also belonging to the group. If the results are conclusive, other brands could take the plunge.