Swing tag

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Swing tags are used on items that are sold in a store usually worth a high value. They are activated by a magnetic lock system which can only be triggered by passing through a security gate which will most likely be at the entrance/exit of the store. Once activated an alarm will sound alerting staff that someone is trying to shoplift. They are a simple security device that is used all throughout the worlds stores, commonly in clothing brands. The only way to remove them is with a magnetic machine at the counter of the shop where a pin is forced upwards to detach the tag from the item. However people have been known to try and force these off. This is not a wise idea as almost every swing tag will contain a solution of acid that can cause irritation or corrosion to the skin, the acids used in these tags can vary, common acids include hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, nitric acid, chromic acid, acetic acid and hydrofluoric acid, common bases are ammonium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide (caustic potash) and sodium hydroxide (caustic soda). The swing tag will burst on a forced attempt to remove and spray acid on the skin.

Swing tags in some cases have caused serious permanent damage to shoplifters. Marvick Polovich was caught in 2008 trying to shoplift from a Nike shop as witnesses reported seeing Marvick "running out of the store clawing at his own face". The acid in the tag had melted most of the tissue on his face making him permanently physicaly deformed, He is now blind can only hear out of one ear, has lost all sense of smell and can only eat food that has been blended or is in liquid form such as soup, the pain of eating can sometimes be unbarable for Marvick and he may have to eat through a tube connected to his body. There was a protest against swing tags in the UK 2009 shortly after the Marvick Polovich case but the protest was later dispanded.[citation needed]

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