Crime watch while touring Ireland.

Are you visiting just big cities, like Dublin, and/or smaller towns, or way out in the country? Driving a rental car, tsking trains and/or buses? As you probably find at home, places packed with ore people have a greater chance of one of those people being a criminal. Of course, bad things can happen anywhere, but if you're keeping en eye on your handbag, most anywhere Ireland is not generally a place to be overly concerned.

In my experience, one should always use the same cautions when traveling in ANY city abroad as you'd use in a major US city such as NYC, Chicago, LA, etc. I've read the same crime alerts for Rome as I've read for traveling in San Francisco.

Just use some common sense. You'll be fine!

Greetings from Ireland
I've travelled the country every week for 20 years with American visitors and guests and have rarely encountered any petty crime and zero serious crime.
In Dublin pickpocketing has increased, though not to alarming levels and there is an increase in people snatching smartphones as people who stand gazing deep into their screens in the middle of busy street are obviously easy targets for 'grab and run' opportunist thieves.
I had my iPhone stolen from my hand outside the Temple Bar pub, in the middle of a busy and bustling street, I never saw it again... sob sob :(
I confess I had enjoyed at least 5 pints of Guinness by that stage and was in no state to be sprinting after him (I'm no Usain Bolt anyway) but even If I wanted to, there were so many people crowded around that I'd never have caught him.
Other than someone grabbing your iPhone in Dublin, I think you should expect to never encounter crime.
And as others have said here - dont be complacent, always be alert and you'll be fine. You likely be fine even if youre not alert :)
Slainte/good health
Stephen McPhilemy
Rick Steves Ireland Tour-Guide
Dingle, Derry and Dublin

Thank you for your responses.
I will be with a tour group again visiting cities as well as country. I have travelled solo extensively in the States and seem to know when to kick in my "pay attention" brain. This little old lady is basically new to world travel and I like to have a little 'heads up' as to what to expect.
I probably could have avoided an altercation in Paris if I had known not to engage, not to look at, to ignore rudely the street peddler trying to force a selfie-stick on a fellow female traveler and myself. We were in the back of the group. I ignorantly politely replied "no thank you" and the aggressive sale was on. We moved away and closer in to the group but he followed. I don't appreciate a pushy man forcing himself on me and finally in my strong forceful loud voice snapped "NO." He became menacing and the tour guide noticing the altercation intervened. My point is, I didn't know ahead of time that polite refusals of goods is the wrong thing to do overseas. I'm uncomfortable being rude and it doesn't come naturally to me but I now know that was exactly what I needed to do. Others in the group asked what happened and when I explained some were shocked that rudely ignoring a human being is expected behavior. They were grateful to find that out though.

Best advice we got.

Just be aware for the most part and it’s no worse than any other place with one exception. Temple bar area. Don’t set anything down. It will be gone. Keep your phone and your wallet in your front pockets only. If you have a shopping bag or backpack and set it on the ground between your feet, kids will crawl under the table and take things out of it. Keep bags on your lap. And watch out for the gypsys. Their new game is to hand you a baby and refuse to take him back until you give them cash. Theyre ruthless and kind of thrust the child at unsuspecting tourists. If you see them stand up and shake a finger at them and say “no no”.