rio de janeiro is famously recognized for having some of the most beautiful beaches in the globe - with an influx of tourists, and high volumes of locals, these areas are particularly vulnerable to theft - historically, the beaches of copacabana and ipanema have been the setting for the immediate disappearance of a variety of things left unattended - items from sunglasses to clothing, bags, and even food can disappear if not watched by its owner.

the 'arrastão,' fishnet, is a type of robbery in which assailants rob groups of people by running through the beach and grabbing anything easily snatched - more commonly seen in the old days, large groups of robbers would go 'en masse' to the sands of copacabana and robbed hundreds of people at the same time - eventually an army of policemen posed as sun-bathers and quickly put an end to it,

it is extremely important for sun bathers, going for a swim, to have someone keep an eye over items left behind - visitors should never leave anything unattended on the sand, or even in the care of locals who they just met - any of the newer beach kiosks offer small storage rooms that can be rented to safeguard belongings for the day.