Anti-theft is the most oversold category in travel gear. Some of it works; a lot of it is a sticker on a spec sheet.
Worth paying for
- Hidden back-panel pocket. The one pocket a pickpocket cannot reach while the bag is on your back.
- Lockable double zips. Not because a lock stops a determined thief, but because it stops the casual opportunist entirely.
- Zip pulls that face inward. A small design decision that makes an opened bag obvious.
Mostly theatre
- Slash-proof mesh. Bag slashing is rare in the places most travellers go, and the mesh adds weight and stiffness.
- RFID-blocking pockets. Contactless card fraud by proximity scanning is close to non-existent in practice.
The habit beats the feature
Carry the pack on your front in crowds, keep your passport in the back panel and your phone in a zipped pocket, and you have covered more risk than any single feature on the listing.