Glitter Bomb Trap 2.0: The Return of the Glitter Bomb for Thieves

In December 2018, we shared one of several projects published by Mark Rober, which went viral within minutes for a simple reason: it punished package thieves with an explosion of glitter and horrible artificial farts. A year later, package theft continues at scandalous levels, and Mark decided to strike back with a revised version of his automatic glitter bomb, which took eleven months of development. The video features some guests, including the true master (and source of inspiration) of anti-thief devices...

The story began a year and a half ago, when Mark Rober suffered a package theft at his doorstep. The police decided to do nothing even with the security camera footage, and that led to the development of the first glitter bomb camouflaged as a package. The web welcomed that act of technological justice, but the reality is that 1.7 million packages are stolen or lost daily across the pond. Time for the reloaded version.

A Thorough Redesign

The first step was to redesign the bomb so it wouldn't be a 'rat's nest' (Mark's own words) full of wires. This was possible thanks to the work of Sean Hodgins (who has an electronics and robotics channel) with custom PCBs and integrated accelerometers.

The bomb also includes new safety measures, so it can only be disarmed using special tools. Finally, Mark decided to modify his artificial farts formula to make it more potent, and doubled the amount of spray.

Ten Boxes, Four Phones Each

In total, Mark built ten boxes, all equipped with four smartphones and LTE connections that allow video upload to the cloud in case the devices aren't recovered. The use of biodegradable glitter and the inclusion of sound effects (for example, fake police calls) were small additional touches. Mark had no trouble finding volunteers to distribute his bombs across US territory. The rest was a matter of waiting...

Revenge and Rewards

And in general, thieves fell again, ending up covered in glitter and smelling like excrement. But the process wasn't necessarily perfect. After some failed starts, one volunteer preferred to steal the package and keep the four smartphones. Mark got revenge in a very particular way: he used his contact information to make him appear interested in Scientology, bought all of L. Ron Hubbard's books in his name, created several fake cards referencing flat earth, body odor issues, immigration and other 'uncomfortable' topics, and accidentally distributed copies among his neighbors.

At the same time, many tried to protect the package, or pick it up to use the contact info and deliver it to its owner before someone else stole it. Mark rewarded them with $400, a not-insignificant sum. I guess the 'joke' is exhausted at this point, but the underlying truth remains intact: there are idiots who will keep stealing packages.