Is Blockchain the Solution to Retail Crime?
Explained: How blockchain might be the answer to retail theft

Over the years, several individuals and companies have tried to find a solution to this menace, but to little avail. However, that could soon change thanks to Lowe's. The American home improvement giant is working on a solution that combines blockchain and other emerging technologies to deliver the necessary blow to retail thieves. Lowe's has named this retail theft prevention system "Project Unlock" and it could have massive potential in the future.

Project Unlock - What is it?

Lowe's Companies Inc has decided to work on a smarter solution - Project Unlock. It uses low-cost Radio Frequency Identity (RFID) chips in combination with the Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain technology to create a virtual security system that can prevent the theft of goods within a retail store.

Two interconnected systems are at work here. The first part of the protocol is the Point-of-Sale (PoS) activation system. This system ensures that only goods that are purchased legally will be activated and become operational. Whereas goods that are stolen will not be activated and will not work.

The second component of the protocol employs blockchain technology to maintain a transparent, immutable record of transactions and legal purchases. These transaction details are tamper-proof and accessible to all. Project Unlock will maintain a transparent record where the purchases will be documented without revealing the details of the buyers.

Potential use cases of Project Unlock

Lowe's believes that Project Unlock can be established as a security measure on a much larger scale and the company sees a world of opportunity with their solution. For starters, the system can be adapted for any product with moving parts or electrical components, such as home appliances, cars, smartphones and other gadgets. It can also be tweaked for other industries and products.

Conclusion

The blockchain revolution has only just begun, but it has already managed to revolutionize the way several industries and businesses operate. And while it remains to be seen how Project Unlock unfolds over the coming years and how it can be implemented across other kinds of products in the future, the potential of such a system is undoubted. cnbctv18.com


Shoplifting Epidemic Finally on D.C.'s Radar
Washington D.C. slowly wades into the wave of shoplifting, ORC hitting retailers

The epidemic of shoplifting, smash-and-grab robberies and "flash robs" at businesses across the U.S. has gotten so bad that it caught the attention of leaders in D.C.

Congress is scrambling to fight back. President Biden recently signed a spending bill that included the INFORM Act which forces Amazon and other online marketplaces to gather contact information, tax IDS and other records from high-volume sellers. The hope is it injects enough sunlight into the selling process to ensure online markets do not unwittingly facilitate gangs who fence stolen goods.

"A lot of street crime is actually driven by organized crime," Sen. Bill Cassidy, Louisiana Republican and chief co-sponsor of the bill, told The Washington Times. "If you go after these high-volume online sales of stolen goods, you would do something positive as regards to crime in general."

Retail lobbyists are pushing for more, including a bill that would prod the federal government to team with state and local authorities in identifying and disrupting criminal rings that target stores and shuffle goods around the country.

Organized retail theft is "interstate, not just intra-state. It's really important for federal law enforcement to work together and share information," said Michael Hanson, senior vice president for public affairs at the Retail Industry Leaders Association.

Mr. Hanson said organized fencers will enlist people - often those who are down on their luck and easy prey for gangs - to go into stores and slip items into their bags or clothing. The thieves get a cut of the proceeds once they turn the products over to gangs that fence the goods online.

Retail lobbyists say organized theft is a growing problem, and one fed by the ease of setting up a fly-by-night operation online to move goods and then shut down a vendor account without facing accountability from buyers and online marketplaces that facilitate the sales.

Another key effort, the Combatting Organized Retail Crime Act, is championed by lawmakers in both parties but is still pending. It would create a Center to Combat Organized Retail Crime at the Department of Homeland Security to increase federal coordination with state and local law enforcement agencies so they can track and recover goods and disrupt and prosecute illicit gangs that drive retail theft.  washingtontimes.com


DOJ's War on Violent Crime Continues Nationwide
Federal, State, and Local Law Enforcement Join Forces to Disrupt Violent Crime, Firearms, and Drug Trafficking in Multiple Jurisdictions Across the Country
"Today, the Justice Department has taken several significant enforcement actions to disrupt large-scale illegal gun and drug trafficking operations," said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. "I am grateful to all of the Department's agents, prosecutors, and staff involved in these actions, as well as to our state and local partners, for their tireless work. The actions taken today represent the work that is being done by this Department every single day to disrupt violent crime, combat gun violence, and get deadly fentanyl out of our communities."

Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, a seven-count indictment was unsealed charging David Mccann, Tajhai Jones, Raymond Minaya, and Calvin Tabron with allegedly conspiring to illegally traffic more than 50 firearms. This prosecution is the first in New York, and among the first in the country, to charge the gun trafficking provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which Congress and the President enacted in June 2022.

Read more about the case here.

In the Northern District of West Virginia today, two Baltimore-based drug trafficking organizations that supplied large amounts of fentanyl to West Virginia and caused at least two deaths have been dismantled by separate federal indictments that were unsealed today. Thirty-four people from Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia were indicted on charges related to the sale of fentanyl, heroin, and other drugs in Hampshire County and Mineral County.

Read more about the case here.

And in the Southern District of Georgia today, 76 defendants are named in a newly unsealed federal indictment describing a massive drug trafficking investigation tied to the Ghost Face Gangsters criminal street gang that includes allegations of multiple deaths from illegal drug overdoses.

Read more about the case here. justice.gov


Will This Hamper NYC Crime-Fighting Efforts?
NYPD scales back releasing graphic videos of crimes meant to drive tips, help nab violent suspects: report

Graphic videos of violent NYC crime amount to 'sensationalism,' deter tourists

The New York City Police Department is reportedly scaling back the number of graphic videos capturing violent crimes it releases to the public - footage that's routinely publicized in an effort to nab suspects.

One source said the video of a recent attack amounted to "sensationalism." And in recent months, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has contended that the perception of Big Apple's subway crime, for example, is greater than actuality.

Experts who spoke to the Daily News, however, said that the graphic videos of the crime itself are the ones necessary to inspire tipsters who would normally remain quiet to give information or a name to police. Outrage over the violence itself also drives clicks online, leading to more eyeballs on the videos.

"If you look back at the George Floyd murder, many communities were very much traumatized, especially communities of color, by the footage of that event," Jelgic said. "It also really started a movement. It got people to recognize a social problem and caused them to act. So there's a balancing of what is being shown and for what purpose."

In a statement, the NYPD press office said it released 3,614 requests for media attention in 2022 - an increase from 3,565 in 2021. On Jan. 5, the NYPD announced citywide crime statistics for December. Overall index crime in New York City decreased for the second straight month, declining by 11.6% compared with December 2021. foxnews.com


Opinion: Crime is only the biggest obvious omission in NYC Mayor Adams' new budget
The 2024 budget draft projects $103.4 billion in total spending, including $77 billion funded by city taxpayers. That $77 billion would represent a 2.6% decline over this year's spending, even before accounting for high inflation.

Federal gun prosecutions surge in response to New Orleans crime

Businesses in Hazle Township to increase security after deadly shooting

New Haven mayor names city's first-ever violence prevention coordinator
 

US: 103.5M Cases - 1.1M Dead - 100.4M Recovered
Worldwide: 671.4M Cases - 6.7M Dead - 642.7M Recovered

Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 362   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 828

New COVID Wave is a Bigger Risk Than People Think
'People aren't taking this seriously': experts say US Covid surge is big risk

Fewer precautions, recent holidays and subvariants have driven rise but boosters, masks and other precautions are still effective

New sub-variants are causing concern for their increased transmissibility and ability to evade some antibodies, but the same tools continue to curtail the spread of Covid, especially bivalent boosters, masks, ventilation, antivirals and other precautions, experts said.

Yet booster uptake has been "pitiful", said Neil Sehgal, an assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. Antiviral uptake has been low, and few mandates on masking, vaccination and testing have resumed in the face of the winter surge, which is once again putting pressure on health systems.

New Covid hospital admissions are now at the fourth-highest rate of the pandemic, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Covid hospitalizations declined somewhat after the summer wave, but never dropped to the low levels seen after previous spikes, persisting through the fall and rising again with the winter holidays. theguardian.com


The Rise of the 'Chief Remote Officer'
COVID spurred on working from home. With the rise of the 'Chief Remote Officer,' is it here to stay?
The evidence is certainly mounting for companies to invest in heads of remote. A study of 95 technology companies by real estate and workplace advisory T3 revealed that the proportion with a designated leader for remote work jumped from 2 per cent to 15 per cent between August 2020 and February 2021.

Companies like Facebook, Okta, LinkedIn, LogMeIn, and more have recently hired specific leadership for remote working. The role is expanding beyond the technology sector too. Companies such as Unilever, Nationwide, Procter & Gamble, and Deloitte have created their own version of the role.

But they're leaning towards titles like "VP of future of work," recognising that businesses that don't operate exclusively in the knowledge industry, and/or are creating hybrid models rather than exclusively remote, still need leadership to guide this new way of working.

The job title might sound intangible to some, but it demonstrates how companies understand how making a remote work experience a good one doesn't just happen by couriering a laptop and desk to somebody's house and expecting them to get on with it. uk.finance.yahoo.com


Here's a list of major companies requiring employees to return to the office
Starbucks and Disney are two behemoths that issued return-to-office mandates in January.

China's bid to leave covid behind could determine global economy's fate

WHO appeals to China to release more COVID-19 information

Business Continuity & Disaster Planning from a Security Perspective
Security Planning: Ask What Could Go Wrong

Are you asking the right questions about potential scenarios when thinking about disaster recovery and business continuity?

Rather than approach security from a reactive perspective, we should always be planning for the future by asking the question: What could go wrong?

When Planning, Ask: What If?

But what if a country invaded yours? What if there was a completely unprovoked attack? How would you operate if your cloud instance was hosted in the aggressor's country? How would you be sure that your system would have the security resilience to survive such a scenario? Are these questions included in your disaster recovery and business continuity plans?

The war in Ukraine has served as an exemplar of worst-case scenarios for any country in the world today. There was a great deal of "what if" planning for various wartime situations long before the Russians ever crossed the border into Ukraine. The world needs to take note and start answering these questions.

This line of thinking may seem extreme, but it's far more realistic than preparing for a meteor strike, let alone queuing up at the local electronics shop to buy laptops, along with hundreds of other companies.

If a cloud provider was cut off from the Internet for whatever reason, what would be your contingency plan to weather the storm? We have to be vigilant in the face of threats ranging from pickup trucks hitting power lines, to chip fabrication plants needing to move to other countries due to ever-shifting political issues.

Building out our strategies to reduce risk and increase our security resilience will go a long way to help address the clear and present dangers we face in this modern age. darkreading.com


The Debate Over How to Handle Returns
Why companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Target are letting customers keep some returns, even after issuing refunds

Walmart, Target, and Amazon are some of the major retailers offering so-called returnless refunds.

If this phenomenon has happened to you at some point in the past few years, you're not alone: some of America's largest retailers have started issuing refunds while telling customers to keep or donate the unwanted goods.

Walmart, Target, and Amazon have started offering so-called returnless refunds on certain items, but we're not talking about free TVs and computers - the policy is applied in situations where the product is unlikely to be resold and where the cost of processing the return is equal to or greater than the cost of the product itself. It's intended for lower-cost items, and reserved for customers with purchase history at a given retailer.

It's a relatively recent trend in retail, and one that accelerated with the onset of the pandemic, when retailers were navigating a surge in online shopping, according to Nathan Smith, senior vice president of products at Appriss Retail, a retail software firm. businessinsider.com


Home Depot to Pay Hourly Associates to Nearest Minute of Punch Out

Scraping the controversial 'timesheet rounding' to the nearest 15 minutes.

The move comes after employees filed lawsuits accusing Home Depot of depriving them of pay.

Like many retailers, the company has rounded the total time of a shift up or down to the nearest 15 minutes to determine how much to pay employees. But after several employees filed lawsuits in recent years accusing the company of purposefully rounding down their pay, the company is changing course.

Timesheet rounding, or rounding up or down based off time worked, has been used by many restaurants and retailers for years. And it is considered legal under federal laws, so long as it is neutral and favorable to employees and it does not exceed a 15-minute increment. businessinsider.com


California Storms Continue
Bay Area storm: Overnight downpours cause damage throughout region as forecasts clear for remainder of the week
One of the wettest periods in the Bay Area's recorded history began winding to a close this week with a lashing of rain that caused hillsides to buckle in the Berkeley and Oakland hills and several highways to close across Northern California. Yet even as emergency crews scrambled to red-tag houses and clear storm drains, California water and climate officials voiced relief at mostly sunny forecasts for the foreseeable future. mercurynews.com


Bed, Bath & Beyond considers sale of Buy Buy Baby, other assets
As part of contingencies for a potential bankruptcy, Bed Bath & Beyond is reportedly speaking to private equity firm Sycamore Partners about selling off some of its more valuable assets, including the Buy Buy Baby chain of stores.

Target opened 23 stores in 2023 - here is strategy behind them and the locations

Saks Fifth Avenue proposes casino at NYC flagship


Last week's #1 article --

Shoplifters or Security Guards: What's the bigger financial burden?

'Sprawling Cybercrime Haven'
Researchers Find 'Digital Crime Haven' While Investigating Magecart Activity

A security vendor's investigation of infrastructure associated with a new, crypto-focused Magecart skimmer leads to discovery of cryptoscam sites, malware distribution marketplace, Bitcoin mixers, and more.

Researchers from Malwarebytes recently observed a threat actor deploying a payment card skimmer - based on a framework called mr.SNIFFA - on multiple e-commerce sites. mr.SNIFFA is a service that generates Magecart scripts that threat actors can dynamically deploy to steal credit and debit card information from users paying for purchases on e-commerce websites. The malware is known for employing various obfuscation methods and tactics like steganography to load its payment card stealing code onto unsuspecting target websites.

Sprawling Crime Haven

Their investigation of the infrastructure used in the campaign led to the discovery of a sprawling network of other malicious activities - including cryptocurrency scams, forums for selling malicious services, and stolen credit card numbers - that appeared linked to the same actor.

"Where one criminal service ends, another one begins - but often times they are linked," said Jerome Segura, director of threat intelligence at Malwarebytes, in a blog post summarizing the company's research. "Looking beyond snippets of code and seeing the bigger picture helps to better understand the larger ecosystem as well as to see potential trends."

Crypto-Related Scams

Malwarebytes decided to see if there were any other websites hosted on DDoS Guard that might have the same "2x" in their domain names as the three sites associated with the Magecart campaign had. The exercise revealed multiple fraudulent websites engaged in illicit cryptocurrency related activities.

"These fake sites claim to be official events from Tesla, Elon Musk, MicroStrategy, or Michael J. Saylor and are tricking people with false hopes of earning thousands of BTC," Segura said. "These crypto-giveaway scams have grown five-fold in H1 2022, according to a September 2022 report by Group-IB," he added. darkreading.com
 

Ransomware Gangs Not Letting Up in 2023
Ransomware has now become a problem for everyone, and not just tech

Ransomware attacks have rumbled on for years and show no signs of slowing down. It's time we faced the threat head on.

Ransomware was one of the major cybersecurity issues of last year - and many of the previous years too - as cyber criminals used file-encrypting malware against a series of victims, including universities, schools, hospitals and more.

The goal of ransomware attacks is simple; make money by demanding a ransom payment in exchange for the decryption key to (maybe) unlock the encrypted systems.

These ransom demands can be millions of dollars. But while national governments, law enforcement agencies and cybersecurity companies warn that victims should never pay the ransom because it only encourages further attacks, many do; either because they feel helpless, or because they think it's the quickest way of retrieving their encrypted files. Not that crooks can be trusted to hold their word.

Not every ransomware victim gives into the ransom demands, instead opting to painstaking restore their network from scratch, which can take weeks or even months - but a significant number victims do pay, which is why ransomware continues to be a major cybersecurity threat - because it works and it makes criminals money.

But ransomware isn't some abstract threat where the impact is restricted to technology or the victim organization and its employees - it often has an impact on the general public too.

Ransomware attacks are a tricky problem to tackle of course - international in nature, with gangs often hiding in jurisdictions beyond the reach of law enforcement and mostly demanding hard-to-track cryptocurrency for payment. But hoping they will simply go away is not going to make it so - it's time for action. Law enforcement agencies have had some success against the gangs, but more is needed.

This is issue that is much bigger than tech and should be treated as such especially when gangs are willing to threaten the key services and institutions we rely on. zdnet.com


Organizations Need Encryption
Why encrypting emails isn't as simple as it sounds
The quality of protected communications matters - a lot. If the sent material is highly sensitive and the legislation and/or policy demands high security, opportunistic encryption might not be enough. For organizations, deciding what email encryption solution to use is often not so simple and, generally speaking, there is no single correct answer.

Why organizations need encryption

Encrypting an email message ensures that unauthorized parties cannot read it. For any party without proper authorization, the message will appear indecipherable.

For organizations, message confidentiality is crucial to stop potentially sensitive information from reaching prying eyes. Also, they should be able to confirm the integrity of the message and the sender's identity - without this, spoofed messages can be sent.

The basis of confidential communication over email is that both sender and recipient have secured their respective local systems, by hardening the host OS, employing client security, EDR, XDR and so forth.

Different options have different benefits and challenges: helpnetsecurity.com


Customer Data Accessed in Norton LifeLock Breach
Norton LifeLock Warns on Password Manager Account Compromises

Password manager accounts may have, ironically, been compromised via simple credential stuffing, thanks to password reuse.

Norton LifeLock customers have fallen victim to a credential-stuffing attack. Cyberattackers used a third-party list of stolen username and password combinations to attempt to break into Norton accounts, and possibly password managers, the company is warning.

Gen Digital, owner of the LifeLock brand, is sending data-breach notifications to customers, noting that it picked up on the activity on Dec. 12, when its IDS systems flagged "an unusually high number of failed logins" on Norton accounts. After a 10-day investigation, it turns out that the activity stretched back to Dec. 1, the company said.

While Gen Digital didn't say how many of the accounts were compromised, it did caution customers that the attackers were able to access names, phone numbers, and mailing addresses from any Norton accounts where they were successful. darkreading.com


Cybersecurity expert reveals warning signs of a hacked webcam or smartphone

Maximizing data value while keeping it secure

Mesquite, TX: $2 million in jewelry stolen after concrete wall breached at mall
Someone at a Mesquite mall broke through a concrete wall in an abandoned Sears and then into a jewelry store, where they swiped around $2 million in jewelry, police said. The heist happened at American Jewelers at the Town East Mall, where the jewelry store shares a wall with an old Sears space. An employee arrived Saturday morning and discovered the theft, though police did not say what time they believe the break-in happened. When officers arrived, they found that someone had broken into the old Sears store and breached a concrete wall between the Sears and the jewelry store, a police statement said. Sheetrock was also "busted out to make entry to the jewelry store," police said. Inside the store, "a large amount of jewelry" was stolen, valued at around an estimated $2 million, the store employee told police. Police were still working with mall security to get any surveillance video from inside the mall. American Jewelers is located on the first floor of the Town East Mall and shares a wall with the old Sears space, on the northwest side of the mall. wfaa.com


Green Oak Township, MI: 5 charged in Ulta beauty store robbery
Five women have been charged after prosecutors say they stole thousands of dollars of merchandise from an Ulta store in Livingston County. The scene unfolded around 8 p.m. Thursday in Green Oak Township, which is south of Brighton. After the suspects fled the store, one of them allegedly drove her get-away car right toward police. Officers fired shots, but no one was hit. According to the prosecutor's office, one of the suspects charged, Laronda Chase, has 20 outstanding bench warrants and a prior conviction of assault and battery in 2013. Her bond was set at $100,000. The second suspect, Tirezah Scott, is a convicted felon who was released in January 2022. Her bond was set at $250,000. "This defendant presents with a lengthy record or convictions in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan," said Carolyn Henry, Livingston County prosecutor. Officials said the third suspect, Shanel Webster, is also a convicted felon with lengthy criminal records in Michigan and Texas. According to authorities, Shanel Webster allegedly used counterfeit money at the Green Oak Ulta - in addition to stealing thousands of dollars of products. fox2detroit.com


Schaumburg, IL: Surveillance Video Shows 10 Thieves Breaking In To Luxury Dealership, Stealing Sports Cars
Surveillance video shows at least 10 people breaking in to a Chicago-area car dealership earlier this week and stealing six luxury cars, according to the Cook County Sheriff's Office. The video was taken at Exclusive Autohaus, a pre-owned car dealership on the 1600 block of South Roselle Road in Schaumburg, Ill., that specializes in luxury vehicles. Security cameras captured the burglary, which police responded to early Monday morning. The group, who spent about 10 minutes at the dealership, made off with six luxury vehicles - a blue 2014 Audi S7, two blue 2017 Audi Q7s, a blue 2018 Mercedes Benz GLS 450, a white 2019 Mercedes Benz E300, and a black 2014 Maserati Ghibli - before police arrived.  wgntv.com


Cleveland, OH: Brown's QB Deshaun Watson's truck among five vehicles stolen from luxury dealership in North Olmsted
Several vehicles were recovered after being stolen from a North Olmsted luxury dealership, including a truck owned by Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson. Sgt. Matthew Beck of the North Olmsted Police Department said the theft occurred just after 1a.m. on Saturday when five individuals broke into the Mercedes-Benz of North Olmsted dealership on Lorain Road. The still-unidentified suspects stole the keys to several vehicles and drove five vehicles off of the lot, including four Mercedes-Benz models and a Dodge Ram pickup truck. The cars were all customer-owned, with police confirming the pickup owned by Watson was at the dealership to be serviced.  cleveland.com


Port St. Lucie, FL: Ulta Beauty in Tradition hit again, robbers targeting expensive fragrances
According to Port St. Lucie Police, Ulta Beauty in Tradition has now been robbed more than seven times over the last year. In fact, Ulta Beauty stores have been targeted nationwide in recent months. The alluring scent of money is irresistible to robbers looking to profit. Police say the robbers are after pricey perfumes that are worth thousands on the black market. "It has a very good value or a high-end value, as I should say, and a very easy sale after the fact if you will," explained Det. Dominik Savitchef of the PSLPD's Property Division. Video provided by the Port St. Lucie Police Department shows thousands of dollars of expensive perfume and cologne being swiped from Tradition's Ulta Beauty shop just a few days ago.  cbs12.com


Skokie, IL: Flash Mob Robbery at Louis Vuitton Store, Old Orchard Shopping Center
Police from Skokie responded about 7:23 p.m. Monday, January 16, 2023 to a report of a flash mob robbery at Louis Vuitton, at the Westfield Old Orchard shopping center in Skokie. A witness reported about 8 male offenders ran out of the store, each loaded with merchandise. . The offenders fled in an SUV, but no detailed description of the vehicle was available initially.  arlingtoncardinal.com


Greenfield, WI: Update: Walgreens theft, police chase; dash cam, body cam video released
Greenfield police say they stopped a group of three persons from taking roughly $150 worth of merchandise - including nail polish - from a Walgreens store. But officials said arrests did not come until after a two-mile police chase and someone in the getaway truck tossed a gun. FOX6 News is learning news information about a retail theft and police chase that took place in Greenfield on Sunday, Jan. 8. This, after officials released dash camera and body camera video of the incident.  fox6now.com


Gainesville, FL: Woman who just got out of prison arrested for stealing from Walmart
A Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer was standing by the exit when the loss prevention officer tried to stop Duncan, but Duncan allegedly refused to stop, telling the loss prevention officer that she was a minor and he could not touch her. Duncan then allegedly pushed past the loss prevention officer to get to the second set of exit doors. The GPD officer approached her as she came out of the second set of doors and told her to stop; she allegedly refused at first but then stopped. Post Miranda, Duncan reportedly said she stole the items because she just got out of prison and has no money. Duncan was convicted in August 2021 of 18 felonies and eight misdemeanors, mostly grand theft auto, petit theft, burglary, and illegal possession of debit/credit cards; she served one year and seven months in prison and was released on January 2.  alachuachronicle.com


Birmingham, AL: Phones stolen in smash-and-grab at Apple Store in The Summit

Idaho Falls, ID: Police track down woman who allegedly stole $1200 of tools from Home Depot, damaged parked vehicle

Memphis, TN: Men break into beauty store, steal hair and jewelry

Warrnambool, Australia: Police seek information after $3000 / 24 pairs of Oakley sunglasses stolen in smash and grab

Edmonton, Alberta, CN: Pokemon gone: Retailers fight back against 'smash-and-grab' thefts of popular trading cards