History Main / JanitorImpersonationInfiltration

* ''Series/{{Andor}}'': When Luthen asks how Cassian was able to steal proprietary Imperial equipment off a starship Cassian responds that all you need is a uniform, a toolbox and dirty hands.

* This is made easy in the Creator/ForestWhitaker movie ''Film/DiaryOfAHitman''. A man hires the eponymous hitman to kill his wife, so he just tells her the hitman is an electrician he's arranged so she'll open the door for him.

* ''Series/{{The Boys|2019}}''. Hughie Campbell and Mother's Milk gain access to Popclaw's apartment by posing as technicians the landlord has contracted to install a new router. It helps that Hughie used to work in an AV store, so can pull off the role convincingly.

%%
%%

%%
%%

%%
[[quoteright:315:[[ComicStrip/WhatsNewWithPhilAndDixie https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cleanernearn.png]]]]

Enter the Janitor Impersonation Infiltration. Custodians, janitors, cleaning ladies, what do these people have in common? They have access to every room in the building and [[BeneathNotice might as well be part of the scenery]]. [[RightUnderTheirNoses No one pays attention to them]] or wonders why they’re still around after hours while everyone else in the building’s gone. So if you’re looking for an easy-in, they’re the perfect candidates for impersonating when one has to steal that secret formula or those hidden financial records.

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]

[[folder:Comic Strips]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]

* In the ''{{Franchise/Firefly}}'' fic ''[[https://m.fanfiction.net/s/3997755/1/His-Big-Damn-Hero His Big Damn Hero]]'', Kaylee takes advantage of already being a mechanic to impersonate a space station mechanic so she can get close enough to Jayne to help him escape from where he’s being held. She ends up having to pull her gun later on, and is lucky that more of the crew show up at the end, when Jayne is struggling to keep up his charade of taking Kaylee hostage and guards have guns pointed at her. Mal had abandoned Jayne out of fear they’d all be caught, but he wouldn’t abandon Kaylee, prompting him and Zoe to follow once Kaylee’s absence was noticed.

[[folder:Films -- Animation]]

* In ''Anime/Interstella5555'', Octave does this in order to retrieve the memory disks the alien band's unedited memories. It crosses overs with FailedASpotCheck, as the watchman doesn't realize that the janitor's uniform Octave is wearing is several sizes to small on him.
* ''WesternAnimation/Sing2'': After the troupe are turned away by Jimmy Crystal's receptionist, Buster has Meena dress up in a spare janitor outfit so she can help the others sneak past (clinging to a floor cleaner).

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

* In ''Film/{{The Innocent|1994}}'', Barlow breaks into Coleman Hall so he can [[TheKindnapper abduct Gregory for his safety]]. He tells the guard, "Pizza delivery." Once he's in, he yells over his shoulder, "You wanna keep this job, ask for ID!"

* Simon Templar does it in ''Film/{{The Saint|1997}}'', seeking into the BigBad's office disguised as a cleaning lady.

[[folder:Literature]]

* ''Literature/{{The Art of the Steal|2002}}'': Frank Abagnale has been called in to find out why a company's blank payroll checks are disappearing. The management is going on and on about their security procedures. When Abagnale sees the empty, clean trash cans, he promptly asks about the janitor. Management replies, sure, the janitor comes in to clean up, but why is that important?

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]

* ''Series/{{The Boys|2019}}''. Hughie Campbell and Mother's Milk gain access to Popclaw's apartment by posing as technicians the landlord has contracted to install a new router. It helps that Hughie used to work in an AV store, so can pull off the role convincingly.

* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'' had an episode where Flack dressed as a parks department employee as part of a group setup to catch a suspect.

** In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS13E6TheSeedsOfDoom The Seeds of Doom]]", the Fourth Doctor disguises himself as a chauffeur to sneak into a mansion, an odd moment since his usual bluffing tactic is [[BavarianFireDrill being commanding]] and [[TheCharmer having charisma for miles]]. It convinces no-one — perhaps because of this, or perhaps because he was clearly still wearing his scarf under his coat.

** ''Series/{{Jessica Jones|2015}}'': Jessica is told that David Kawecki, a janitor at IGH who took the fall for a murder committed by [[spoiler:Jessica's mom]], is doing life in Birch Psychiatric Hospital. He's locked up in the high security wing in the basement, where the only people allowed are shrinks under the escort of armed security guards. To get access, Jessica asks Oscar to forge her an ID that's good enough to fool an inspection by the guards so she can get access to Kawecki posing as a shrink.
* ''Series/TheMarvelousMrsMaisel'': In season 2, Midge takes off with her family to spend the summer at [[BorschtBelt Steiner Mountain Resort]] up in the Catskills. Susie can't afford for Midge to take two months off from her standup comedy routine, so she follows Midge up to the resort, and gets in by simply wearing her normal attire and buying a toilet plunger. [[BavarianFireDrill Nobody bats an eye and just thinks she's another employee]], though it leads to some awkward conversations when Midge comes clean about her routine with her parents and reveals to them that Susie is her manager.

* In the ''Series/StarskyAndHutch'' episode "Starsky and Hutch Are Guilty," the guys disguise themselves as janitors while they search the office of a man they suspect of framing them for police brutality.

[[folder:Radio]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]

[[folder:Theatre]]

[[folder:Video Games]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'': Alex Mercer. Canonically he only does this - literally consuming and assuming the form of a janitor - once, and hates himself for it.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* In ''Webcomic/{{XKCD}}'', [[Creator/RandallMunroe Randall]] remarks that he has seen this trope so many times in [[TheCaper heist movies]] that he automatically assumes it's in force [[https://xkcd.com/2077/ whenever anyone asks him to open a door.]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]

* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' had an episode with a government agent mentor who turned up as the janitor. Kim didn't want anything to do with him because she thought he was just the janitor. He thought she always knew what he really was because he never expected his {{Canad|aEh}}ian secret agent uniform to be mistaken for a janitor uniform. He even had to explain he wasn't wearing a disguise.

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TimonAndPumbaa'', the duo try to sneak into a talent show. Pumbaa technically disguises himself as an ''electrician'', but gets called out on it for carrying a mop. He explains that a light bulb broke and he has to clean up the electricity that is spilled all over the floor now. The guard buys it and lets him in.

[[folder:Real Life]]

** The Doctor [[DisguisedInDrag disguises himself as a cleaning lady]] while sneaking around the villain's compound in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS10E5TheGreenDeath The Green Death]]".

* Agent 47 tends to do this a ''lot'' in ''VideoGame/{{Hitman}}'', though exactly how often is at the discretion of the player. Sometimes they leave extra uniforms lying out, and sometimes you have to kill or knock them out to acquire it. While effective, any actual janitors will usually recognize you as an impostor.

* Played with in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater''. At one point toward the end of the game Snake needs to do this to get access to the Shagohad and plant a series of bombs in the hangar. Sure enough, the soldiers don't notice, but if any of the other other techs/janitors see you, they'll know that you're not one of them and sound the alarm.

* Agent 47 tends to do this a ''lot'' in ''VideoGame/{{Hitman}}'', though exactly how often is at the discretion of the player. Sometimes they leave extra uniforms lying out, and sometimes you have to kill or knock them out to acquire it.

->'''Arthax:''' That was... Demeaning.\\

* Spike from ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' infiltrates a government facility as a Janitor in ''Cowboy Bebop The Movie''. Unfortunately his guise doesn't fool the resident ActionGirl.
* ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandaloneComplex'':

* In the ''Literature/TheFullerMemorandum'', avoiding this sort of infiltration is one of the reasons that the Laundry cannot outsource their LAN rewiring, with the other reason being that having people unaware of the {{Masquerade}} build the system that you are going to use to fight {{Eldritch Abomination}}s is a very bad idea. Ironically, the person that Bob explains this to turns out to be TheMole. Bob uses the trick himself in The Rhesus Chart to investigate an investment bank, [[spoiler:but he gets made almost instantly]]