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It isn't always fake. I used to work in a retail chain store (I won't say its name, but it ends with "xx" and starts with "TJ") and we were trained to use certain codes on the PA when we needed security to come deal with a situation. The difference, I think, is that these real alerts were coded so as not to be understood by the customers.

"All warfare is based on deception."

- Sun Tzu, 5th century BC

You just blew my mind. It was very convincing hearing these as a kid.

As a kid? Kroger stores regularly play these loudspeaker "Security check, zone blue" announcements to this day in certain stores about the country.