TIKTOK pranksters have been putting up fake stickers in stores to encourage shoplifting.
Sainsbury's, Tesco, Co-Op And Guard rose are all targeted by the campaign, despite rising theft rates.
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A fake poster in a London Co-Op store read: “Shoplifting is encouraged in this industry.”
Another at a Waitrose in the city read: 'When you see someone shopliftingno you will not do that.”
The signs were created by self-styled arts group Pattern Up, which previously put up fake posters declaring that Camden Council in north London had legalized cocaine and heroin.
All signs have now been removed.
It is not known whether the posters are related to thefts.
A retail source said: “These people are making our jobs even harder by promoting shoplifting to thousands of young viewers.
“If you take them off, it will have created extra work for someone.”
It follows a trend where users had posted guides on shoplifting TikTokusing the hashtag 'borrow' to circumvent crackdowns.
Sun analysis shows they are still online, despite shoplifting at 1,200 a day last year.
Pattern Up accepted that the posters could encourage shoplifting, but told The Sun: “We created these to start conversations.
“It's a commentary on the effort people put into eating because of the… cost of living crisis.”