 When I was four years old for my birthday my parents gave me a box of magic tricks And I remember practicing them all and they they really sparked a lifelong interest in sleight of hand misdirection and distraction And then when I was about 12 I was looking through an old magazine and I saw a picture and in the picture was a boy he was probably about my age and He was also fascinated with sleight of hand and distraction and misdirection, but he wasn't a magician He was a pickpocket Now the photographer Attempt to capture this bullfighter as he left the famous bull ring in Mexico City in the 1950s He just happens to have pressed the shutter at the point where this young boy in the front has his hand in his victim's pocket And there were thousands of people there and no one saw a thing We don't see as much as we think not even the policeman who's standing just behind the boy Who you didn't notice until I mentioned him? So that really intrigued me and from that moment on I started to study the techniques of real pickpockets And I now travel all over the world performing a pickpocket entertainment act I'm not a criminal I give it all back around the world and I also work with police forces and security companies and individuals So that people can avoid becoming victims And I'd like to share with the Ted audience some techniques so you can avoid becoming victims But I don't have time the best defense I can tell you is distance and with that in mind It's perhaps brave that two people have been pre-selected to join me on stage Perhaps you join me now wherever you are. I know there are two people are gonna join me I have seen them outside, but I haven't met them before today, and they don't know what's about to happen Give them a nice round of applause as they join me on the stage Thank you walk quickly. I'm on a clock. Nice to meet you and your name is again Jeremiah Jeremiah and Richard Richard It's nice to know you Richard Jeremiah. Do you carry very much in your pockets? I can see already I mean something pickpockets have to do is identify what you have an iPhone here What do you have on this side over here anything at all keys? Okay, and on the inside a wallet, maybe Okay, and and do you have much on in your pockets okay one or two things It's called fanning the mark where they check and see we have perhaps I could stand you in the middle Richard and face me One of the things pickpockets do to find out what you have is stand by the sign that says beware pickpockets And when you walk by you all go like this and they know exactly which pocket the most valuable thing isn't In fact a lot of you did that when you were reading the red Itinerary outside you went oh pick button you all went like this That is why I came to choose the two of you were you were patting quite a lot face me a few words Richard And take take your wallet out. No don't have time. Sorry Richard. I'll take questions afterwards in the ball You haven't got a gnome have you? I haven't no this is a wallet now I saw someone recently face me please that's it I saw someone recently in a shop in Knightsbridge He took out his card put it into the machine typed in the pin number and as he was typing in someone Very suspicious sidled over and looked at the number and made a note of it on a mobile phone keypad It's called shoulder surfing should always cover your number when you type it into an ATM or a machine Anyway, this guy then put his wallet away I see you carry on the inside right jacket pocket and as he did that the guy with the phone put the phone away in a Corresponding pocket and I realized he was probably signaling to the pickpocket is waiting outside So they know which pocket to bump into when you come out of the shop What do you carry in your outside pocket down here Richard? I can feel something there. What is it? Could you take it out? Take it out a brush Okay, and can I just move you this way a little bit? Otherwise, I'll wait a week and I don't have time and That brush came from the outside here. Oh pop it away. Thank you very much and on this side. What do you have? That's some pet. Oh, it's your bus pass. Okay, I'm not gonna take that and then a thing on the inside pocket here Your wallet and on this side. What do you have? Sometimes I wait a long time for this a phone, okay? Hey, you got a mobile telephone and a pen on in your trouser pockets Do you carry anything at all? Anything at all in your trouser pockets. No, okay, and here. Oh business cards. He's come on for networking. That's very good Well, I'm gonna try things one at a time and you can decide what I take What would you like me to steal the phone the business cards or the brush? Brush, it's already gone And that's another thing you have to be aware of thank you Another thing you have to be aware of see the world's greatest pickpockets working gangs and while I was talking to you The world's greatest pickpock second greatest pickpocket was standing behind Perhaps you'd like to put them back your cards came from your top pocket Your past came from your outside pocket your brush I think came from this pocket now your pen from your inside pocket your wallet from your inside right pocket and your iPhone here Give them both a big round of applause. I think they did well in that time. Thank you Richard. I appreciate it Thank you very much So all I can say is don't get close to pickpockets. Thank you for having me Richard. Sorry, and would you like to just Jeremiah there's your phone And there's yours other way around Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to be here