How and why museums fall victim to unfathomable heists
On October 19, 2025, thieves pulled off a daylight jewel heist at the Louvre, one of the most secure and iconic museums on the planet. Using a truck-mounted basket lift, the robbers accessed the building, forced open a window, smashed display cases, stole priceless jewels, and escaped into the city on motor scooters. They managed all of this in just under eight minutes.
Eleven suspects have since been arrested. One was detained at Charles de Gaulle Airport, attempting to flee the country. The other was found nearby. Five more were taken into custody weeks later, and the final four were captured just before December 2025.
But despite France’s diligent police work, the incident has garnered worldwide attention. And unfortunately, crimes against museums are hardly as rare or unbelievable as the news makes them out to be.
Museum crimes tend to share DNA
The Louvre incident may dominate headlines now, but art theft is hardly novel. These heists happen more frequently than the public realizes, and they often exploit a common collection of similarly typed vulnerabilities.
In 1990, thieves burglarized Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum by masquerading as cops, overpowering guards, and stealing 13 priceless works, many of which were never recovered. More recently, robbers used explosives to steal from the Drents Museum in the Netherlands. They made off with numerous archaeological artifacts.
These examples and others underscore a sobering truth: museums naturally invite risk. Their treasures are well known, their hallways frequently crowded, and their premises routinely under-protected.
Museum burglars copy each other
High-profile museum robberies don’t just make headlines; they inspire more crime. Mere hours after the Louvre was hit, the Denis Diderot Museum of the Maison des Lumières was also struck. Around 2,000 gold and silver coins dating from the 1790s to the 1840s vanished, and the theft went completely undetected for over 48 hours.
Career criminals pour tons of time, energy, and resources into robbing powerful institutions. However, theft has been and always will be a crime of opportunity. If perpetrators see a museum like the Louvre compromised in broad daylight, they may assume other institutions are equally vulnerable and set out to victimize them.
Museums face similar security concerns
So, how are museums like the Louvre exploited so seemingly easily? The answer lies in a mix of architectural openness, aging infrastructure, and underinvestment in security.
Building design and historic layouts
The Louvre isn’t modern architecture. It’s a piece of history, not unlike the artifacts it holds. Many other museums share similar roots. They’re holdovers from a time when cars, phones, and angle grinders didn’t exist. The risks these institutions faced back then can’t compare to the threats at their doorsteps today.
Aging infrastructure
Museum leaders have openly admitted that their systems are outdated. In fact, some reports suggest only 39% of the Louvre’s rooms were covered by CCTV, and that the camera in the Apollo Gallery (where the heist occurred) was facing the wrong way. A 2014 audit by France’s National Cybersecurity Agency warned of “trivial” passwords and obsolete software, warnings that the Louvre and other popular museums did not heed.
Understaffing and resource misallocation
Museums aren’t always well-funded. Even organizations as immense as the Louvre rely heavily on donations and government subsidies to stay operational. This lack of liquid capital forces galleries to make tough decisions with their spending. In the Louvre’s case, they prioritized renovations over basic security maintenance. Worker reductions and understaffed security teams reportedly also strained the museum's capacity to monitor areas under construction.
High-value goods and materials
Crimes against museums aren’t like the movies. The bad guys don’t always go for the paintings or relics. In fact, the most highly coveted items are those with intrinsic and immediately recognizable value. Things like gold and jewels are easier to sell, harder to track, and demand higher price tags on black markets (for reference, the price of gold has shot up nearly 40% in 2025).
This isn’t to say artwork is safe. Quite the contrary. Criminals still steal paintings, just not necessarily for a payday. They use these priceless canvases as leverage and collateral with law enforcement later down the line, should they run into legal troubles for other, unrelated offenses. A select few thieves also target works of art as a form of “trophy hunting,” although this brand of robbery has steadily declined since the late 20th century.
A few changes can help protect museums
Despite some inherent factors working against museums, there are several forward-thinking measures they can take to reduce risk and thwart bad actors.
Conduct comprehensive security audits
Regular third-party audits of both physical and cyber infrastructure are essential. Museums shouldn’t rely solely on internal reviews. Outside experts can point out blind spots, outdated systems, and process failures that day-to-day staff might otherwise miss.
Modernize surveillance and alarms
Upgrading CCTV coverage with the latest technology and ensuring cameras are well-placed can go a long way toward warding off criminals and catching those who attempt a burglary. Alarm systems should also be regularly checked and tested under realistic conditions and threat scenarios.
Tighten access control
Perimeter areas such as facades, balconies, and loading zones should be treated with the same level of scrutiny as internal exhibits. Screening all vehicles, from motorbikes to commercial trucks, is a bare minimum. No automobiles should enter museum grounds without at least a basic security check.
Red team exercises and penetration testing
Red team tests in the form of simulated heists can help identify what might happen during an actual attack. These exercises can reveal vulnerabilities that static plans or policies might miss. They also help to train staff on best practices and rehearse time-sensitive response processes.
Wholistic Security Planning
It’s easy for museums to fixate on protecting their collections. But in doing so, other threat vectors can become neglected, such as crowd safety. Museums are urban attractions that draw mass numbers of visitors. They’re not only ideal targets for theft; they’re also obvious targets for mass casualty attacks. Museum directors should conduct end-to-end security planning to strengthen their protection and prevention capabilities.
Museums deserve special consideration
Nowhere else in the world do so many valuable things coalesce under one roof. Museums provide a sanctuary for renowned art, sculptures, and artifacts, but they can also be a gold mine for those operating in the shadows.
Chameleon Group’s Chief Executive Officer believes proactive security is the answer to how we keep these mighty pillars of culture and history safe. In his words: “From our work with museums around the world, we’ve learned that proactive security is always more effective — and far less costly — than reacting after a crisis. Once an incident occurs, the knee-jerk spending that follows is almost always higher than what a thoughtful, preventative approach would have required. Recognizing the threat early and allocating resources intelligently is essential for any museum that wants to stay ahead of risk.”
If you’d like to learn more about how the Chameleon Group helps museums, click here for additional resources.
