Tony Davis promoted to Director, National Loss Prevention, Internal Investigations, Rack Operations for Nordstrom
Tony was previously the Director - East Coast Operations for the retailer and has been with Nordstrom since 1994, holding various positions including Regional Loss Prevention Director - Northeast Region, Corporate Loss Prevention Director - Operations, Corporate Director Loss Prevention - Rack  Division, Director - Canada - East Coast Operations, and Director of Operations. Congratulations Tony!


Apple's top leak investigator Lee Freedman departs for Facebook,
Jessica Kirschbraun fills Director of Investigations position
Apple's top investigator Lee Freedman has departed the company for a new role at Facebook. Freedman previously served as the Director of Worldwide Investigations at Apple.

Freedman, who has a background with the Justice Department, served in the top investigations role since 2011. Freedman is credited with creating Apple's cyber program where he managed the company's Cyber Investigations team before being promoted to Director of Investigations.

Put simply, Freedman was responsible for preventing leaks and overseeing Apple's team of investigators who track down how unreleased information and products escape Apple.

He was also responsible for working with law enforcement on security issues as well as overseeing cargo thefts, retail issues, and other security concerns at Apple.

Following his departure from Apple, Freedman will serve a similar role at Facebook as the social network company's Director II and Associate General Counsel for Compliance of Security and Investigations.

Replacing the outgoing Director of Investigations at Apple will be Jessica Kirschbraun, who has been on Apple's Security Counsel since January 2016. 9to5mac.com

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Shooting death at Atlanta eatery prompts call for restaurateurs
to act on security, safety
On Nov. 19, Barcelona Wine Bar restaurant manager Chelsea Beller, 29, was shot and killed during a robbery at the popular eatery located in the Westside Ironworks development at 1085 Howell Mill Road.

Two suspects have since been taken into custody. As a direct result of the death at Barcelona, the Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) hosted a Jan. 9 seminar on best practices for restaurant security, employee safety, active shooter preparedness and effective crisis communications. Some 50 stakeholders attended the event, which was open to restaurant owners and operators.

Speaking to the group was a six-person panel that included ADT Security expert Susanna Rohm, along with others working in risk management, security, public relations and law enforcement.

Rohm spoke about critical security devices, such as panic buttons that silently dispatch police in an emergency. The catch: These tools are only good if employees know where they are located and how to use them. securityinfowatch.com

Tennessee State Sen. files "Organized Retail Crime theft" bill in the hopes of combating the drug epidemic
After talking with law enforcement, he was learning people were selling stolen gift cards and using that money to buy drugs.

He said groups of people will steal merchandise from a store and then return the items without a receipt to get a store valued card. Briggs said pawn shops will then buy the cards at a discount. "We had $200 million that were stolen from such large retailers such as Walmart, Lowes, Target," he said.

He's looking to provide a free statewide database for law enforcement to track these sales. The Knox County Sheriff's Office already has a similar tool but Briggs said every department does not. The downside for deputies in Knox County is that they rely on pawn shops to input the information online. Briggs plans to place more regulations on pawn shops.

"You have to collect and submit this data, you have to register with us or there will be fees and penalties," said Briggs.

Chief Tramel said it's happening every day and many times, people are stealing several times a day. The Knox County Sheriff's Office said at least one gift card was sold more than 600 times in the last month. wate.com

Popular Midwest Furniture Chain Weeds out Fraudulent Credit Applications with Intellicheck's Retail ID Mobile
Intellicheck, Inc., a trusted industry leader in real time identification authentication and threat identification technology solutions, today announced that a leading Midwest furniture chain is now using Intellicheck's Retail ID Mobile to detect fraudulent credit applications at its nine retail locations. The state-of-the-art technology solution provides real-time information, while its easy-to-use features assure an engaging, frictionless experience for new and existing customers seeking store credit. Read more in today's Press Release column below.

An LP Nightmare Begins
Amazon Go's "Just Walk Out" Tech
People line up wrapped around the block at Amazon Go
The store uses cameras and sensors to determine what items customers have taken down from the shelves, eliminating the need for the typical check-out process. Amazon calls it "just walk out technology."

The 1,800 square foot store - the first of its kind - attracted a bunch of gawkers.

How does it work?  All I had to do is download the Amazon Go app, scan a QR code at the entrance, pick what I wanted and leave. My purchase was automatically charged to my Amazon account. Inside the store, signs remind customers: "Just walk out." And "You're good to go (really)!"

Although one customer I talked to seemed skeptical about the real need for cashier-free shops, others seemed excited about this kind of shopping experience. "It's the future," said a hurried customer.

The real test for Amazon Go will be how it stands up to real, everyday use. Amazon has stayed mum on the prospect of expanding either the Amazon Go store models or taking the technology and putting it in other kinds of stores. businessinsider.com seattletimes.com

Editor's Note: This is what will drive facial recognition right through the front door. Couple this with online security features facial recognition and biometrics, gives the consumer and the security benefits it provides law enforcement for preventing terrorism, reducing gun violence, and identifying known criminals and we've got facial recognition everywhere over the next five to ten years. This is inevitable.

The only issue will be the regulations, standards, and individual state laws, with Illinois and New York being the trend setters and bench markers. Just a thought.

5 Former KPMG Executives Charged in Fed. Court
Stealing Info & Fraudulently Improving KPMG Audit Results
Charged in connection with their scheme to defraud the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and the PCAOB by obtaining, disseminating, and using confidential lists of which KPMG audits the PCAOB would be reviewing so that KPMG could improve its performance in PCAOB inspections.

"These defendants were each meant to be the watchmen of our financial system. The defendants who formerly worked for KPMG were vested with the responsibility to audit publicly filed financial statements and issue audit opinions relied upon by the investing public."

"As alleged, the defendants took advantage of confidential information stolen from the PCAOB and used it to tip off KPMG partners of impending audit inspections.  This undermined the overall integrity of the program.  The PCAOB was created by Congress as part of the Sarbanes Oxley Act to reduce accounting scandals but, in this case, certain former employees and KPMG insiders created their own corruption scandal.  

If convicted they maybe facing anywhere from 65 to 85 years in prison. justice.gov

Retail's Best News in a Year
NRF Big Show "Biggest Takeaway"
The biggest takeaway from the annual confab was the optimistic attitude displayed by retailers and suppliers alike. The feeling was reinforced during the show's Retail Economic Roundtable panel discussion, during which industry experts and economists agreed that the current economic climate supports a positive outlook for retail in 2018. They noted that the retail industry benefited from a strong macroeconomic environment during the 2017 holiday shopping season, and that the scenario is likely to continue in 2018. chainstoreage.com

Spectrum Brands Employee Pleads Guilty to $280k Embezzlement
Northam worked as a customer service representative at Spectrum Brands in Middleton, Wis. Northam used his position to embezzle money by submitting false warranty claims and Spectrum issued checks based on these false warranty claims. Northam admitted he took $280,644 from Spectrum and laundered these funds in an effort to conceal the nature and source of the proceeds. Finally, Northam admitted he misused the identities of other persons in order to generate false warranty claim checks for himself. justice.gov

Delaware AG Accuses Distributors & Pharmacies Of Not Preventing Diversion of Opioids in Supply Chain
Delaware Attorney General Matt Denn also accused companies further down the supply chain of violating their legal duties to prevent the "diversion" of opioids for illegitimate use.

Distributors and pharmacies have instead "taken advantage of the massively increased demand for prescription opioids for non-medical uses by profiting heavily from the sale of opioids that they knew, or should have known, were being diverted from the legitimate supply chain to illegitimate channels of distribution," according to the suit.

The distributor defendants include McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen, while the retailers are CVS Health and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

More than 32,000 Delaware residents use prescription opioids for non-medical purposes.

The AG's lawsuit specifically alleges the distributors have supplied opioids "with the actual or constructive knowledge" that they were ultimately being consumed for illegitimate purposes. They also allegedly contributed to diversion by linking employee compensation to the volume of opioid sales to pharmacies.

The state says the opioid epidemic drains at least $100 million a year from its healthcare, criminal justice, social services and welfare, and education systems. The suit seeks, among other things, compensation for those costs. cfo.com

Amazon Won't Ask Prospective Hires For Salary History Anymore
Following the passage of state and local laws aimed at improving pay equity for women and people of color, Amazon joins other tech giants in banning recruiters from asking interviewees for their salary history. Requiring job candidates to share their salary history "perpetuates pay discrimination from job to job," according to the National Women's Law Center.

Hiring managers and recruiters can no longer "directly or indirectly ask candidates about their current or prior base pay, bonus, equity compensation, variable pay, or benefits" or "use salary history information as a factor in determining whether or not to offer employment and what compensation to offer a candidates."

The instructions also explicitly ban the use of tools like LinkedIn Recruiter to estimate or otherwise ascertain an individual's prior salary. According to an Amazon spokesperson, these rules were shared with all Amazon recruiters in the US, and apply equally to salaried employees like software engineers and hourly workers like call center employees. As of October, Amazon employed over half a million people worldwide.  buzzfeed.com

Why Macy's Departing Chairman Thinks the Chain Has Turned a Corner
Macy's was among the many retailers to report sales gains for the holiday season, stoking renewed hope the retail industry is finally learning to combat Amazon.com and finding its footing again. The numbers, which put the department store chain on track to post its first quarter of comparable sales growth in three years, are the start of an awaited payoff to years of investment in Macy's e-commerce firepower, says Macy's departing executive chairman and former long-time CEO Terry Lundgren.

Fortune sat down with Lundgren, who is leaving Macy's altogether on Jan. 31. The questions and answered have been edited for clarity. fortune.com

What if Jeff Bezos and Amazon owned Macy's or Dillard's
Eric Schiffer, an investment and branding expert, envisions a department store experience styled after the new Amazon Go store that just opened in Seattle which offers food and groceries where shoppers are automatically charged for items they pick up without going to cashier stations.

Schiffer said the in-store department store experience would also look to be more customized for shoppers with sales employees knowing what customers have searched for or bought in the past. Think of it as a combination of what Amazon does online meshed with the customer service of Nordstrom.

That might sound very Big Brother-ish for when a customer walks into a mall but Amazon and other e-commerce and social media sites already customize web pages and searches based on user data and behavior. "That's the future," Schiffer said. bizjournals.com

UK's Biggest Grocers - Tesco & Sainsbury Cut Thousands of Jobs
Britons are shopping more on Amazon.com Inc. and other online retailers, while discounters Aldi and Lidl are gaining market share and preventing the likes of Tesco and Sainsbury from raising prices more aggressively. The job cuts are necessary for the grocers to rebuild their profits, while narrowing the price gap between themselves and the discounters. bloomberg.com

Dubai, UAE: Smart Guard program will connect 33,000 security guards

22 Retail Industry Predictions For Brick-And-Mortar Stores In 2018

"Subway is dying" - HQ Battles Killing World's Largest Fast-Food Chain

Simon agrees to Let Starbucks Close it's last 77 Teavana Stores

Lord & Taylor Lays Off 202 employees

Starbucks launches cashless store pilot

 

Popular Midwest Furniture Chain Weeds out Fraudulent Credit Applications with Intellicheck's Retail ID Mobile

Frontline Merchant Fraud Technology Solution Delivers Bottom Line Benefits

JERICHO, N.Y. - Intellicheck, Inc., a trusted industry leader in real time identification authentication and threat identification technology solutions, today announced that a leading Midwest furniture chain is now using Intellicheck's Retail ID Mobile to detect fraudulent credit applications at its nine retail locations. The state-of-the-art technology solution provides real-time information, while its easy-to-use features assure an engaging, frictionless experience for new and existing customers seeking store credit.

"Rampant incidents of fraud are a direct threat to profitability. Retail ID Mobile provides retailers with unparalleled protection and the added benefits accrued from a heightened level of customer satisfaction resulting from an improved credit application process that is at once simple, efficient and effective," said Intellicheck Interim CEO Bill White.

Retail ID Mobile provides retailers with a mobile platform capability that prevents fraud, while delivering an improved customer experience that eliminates the need to integrate with a point-of-sale system. Economical and easily installed on either an iOS or Android mobile device, such as smartphones and tablets, the cloud-based technology solution gives retailers anywhere in the store the ability to authenticate an ID prior to opening a new credit account or engaging in a card-not-present transaction. The state-of-the-art technology solution allows retailers to generate revenues more quickly as it eliminates significant barriers for retailers and their customers.

National Stores - victim of POS malware attack, unauthorized parties accessed payment card info
"We have been working closely with the FBI, cybersecurity experts, and payment card brands to contain the incident and protect our customers' payment cards," said Michael Fallas, Chief Executive Officer for National Stores. "The malware has been removed from our system, and no customers will be responsible for any fraudulent charges to their accounts. We are in the process of strengthening the security of our point of sale systems to prevent this from happening in the future."

Based on the Company's investigation, it appears that payment cards used by customers at some National Stores locations between July 16 and December 11, 2017 may be involved. The affected payment card information may have included names, payment card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes. prnewswire.com

Beware of Last Year's W-2 Phishing Scheme, Authorities Warn
Bogus CEO E-Mails- 'BEC' Scams
The Internal Revenue Service is urging employers to educate their HR and payroll staff about a Form W-2 phishing scam that victimized hundreds of organizations and thousands of employees last year.

"The Form W-2 scam has emerged as one of the most dangerous phishing e-mails in the tax community," the IRS said in a January 2018 alert. During the last two tax seasons, "cybercriminals tricked payroll personnel or people with access to payroll information into disclosing sensitive information for entire workforces," the alert noted.

Reports to phishing@irs.gov about this scam jumped to approximately 900 in 2017, compared to slightly over 100 in 2016, the IRS said. As a result, hundreds of thousands of employees had their identities compromised.

Cybercriminals posing as executives send e-mails to payroll personnel requesting copies of Forms W-2 for all employees, using a technique known as business e-mail compromise (BEC) or business e-mail spoofing (BES). shrm.org

Study: 75% of retailers plan on investing in predictive analytics for LP
According to recent research from Zebra Technologies Corporation, 73% of retailers rate managing big data as important or business-critical to their operations. By 2021, at least 75% of retailers anticipate investing in predictive and software analytics for loss prevention and price optimisation along with cameras and video analytics for operational purposes and improving the overall customer experience. bizcommunity.com

How the LP Industry Can Utilize Artificial Intelligence
Machine Learning & Video Analytics Making Their Mark in Security Applications
Understanding the potential of AI and how it will be used in the security industry begins with the formative efforts of early pioneers. The low-hanging fruit is data mining using machine learning; for example, with loss prevention in department stores, grocers, wholesalers, etc.

To predict loss prevention, retailers can identify variables that are highly correlated to shrink. Those variables fall into four categories: financial, merchandising, human resource and point-of-sale (PoS).

The machine learning technique is regression modeling by which an equation is created to reflect the correlation between shrink and variables, such as refunds, inventory balance and voided transactions at PoS. Data-driven retailers are die-hard fans of this technique and report savings in the millions of dollars and rapid return on investment.

Video analytics is another area where AI techniques, such as deep learning algorithms, are broadly applied. In the security industry a number of vendors provide "black box" video analytics that can be used for nonscan detection at PoS and object recognition, but the big tech vendors are taking this further by offering cognitive services in the Cloud.

Microsoft offers a service on the web that takes an image and then returns a JSON file showing its analysis. For example, given a group photo, the system can detect faces, score emotions and return an analysis of group emotion. Cognitive services like this are going to be more common in the future.

A lot is happening in the robotics space too, including security guard duty in this industry. Elsewhere, companies have been experimenting with robots as greeters in their mobile stores. According to their designers, the robots are capable of human interaction and empathy. securitysales.com

What Will Artificial Intelligence Be Doing in 2018?
AI will not affect employment this year; it will be used for specific, practical purposes; it will ratchet up the intensity of cyber-battles; and more.

However, PricewaterhouseCoopers has done just that in a new paper, released in mid-January, that offers up several predictions for how AI will unfold in 2018.

AI will impact employers before it impacts employment. While forecasts of advancing AI technology displacing workers are commonplace, it hasn't really happened yet. Rather, new jobs offset those that are lost. That will continue this year, PwC says. "People will still work, but they'll work more efficiently with the help of AI," the professional services firm contends.

AI will come down to earth - and get to work. The near-term benefits will be more modest but still valuable. That value "lies not in creating entire new industries (that's for the next decade), but rather in empowering current employees to add more value to existing enterprises," the firm writes.

That empowerment is coming in three main ways:

● Automating processes too complex for older technologies

● Identifying trends in historical data

● Providing forward-looking intelligence to strengthen human decisions

This kind of practical AI is often "sneaking in through the back door," with enterprise application suites from Salesforce, SAP, Workday, and others increasingly incorporating AI capabilities, according to PwC.

3. AI will help answer the big question about data. Now, some companies are rethinking their data strategy and "asking the right questions." For example: How can we make our processes more efficient? What do we need to do to automate data extraction?

Such straightforward questions will lead to what PwC calls "the right approach to data." That is, it's rarely a good idea to start with a decision to clean up data, the firm says. It's almost always better to start with a business case and then evaluate options for how to achieve success in that specific case.

4. Functional specialists, not techies, will decide the AI talent race. AI increasingly will require knowledge and skill sets that data scientists and AI specialists usually lack, according to the paper. once the AI is up and running it will need continual customizing and tweaking. For that, too, functional specialists, not programmers, will have to lead the way.

5. Cyberattacks will be more powerful because of AI - but so will cyberdefense. AI has already shown superiority over humans when it comes to hacking. For example, machine learning, often considered a subset of AI, can enable a malicious actor to follow a person's behavior on social media, then customize phishing tweets or emails just for them, PwC says. And the more AI advances, the more its potential for mounting cyberattacks will grow.

On the other hand, "scalable machine learning techniques combined with cloud technology are analyzing enormous amounts of data and powering real-time threat detection and analysis," PwC points out. AI capabilities can also quickly identify "hot spots" where cyberattacks are surging and provide intelligence reports.

Still, "cyber-wars won't simply be two sets of computers battling it out," the firm adds. "Even in cybersecurity, some things only people can do. Humans are better at absorbing context and thinking imaginatively."

6. Opening AI's black box will become a priority. Many AI algorithms are beyond human comprehension, the paper notes. And some AI vendors will not reveal how their programs work, to protect intellectual property. "In both cases, when AI produces a decision, it's end users don't know how it arrived there. Its functioning is a black box," PwC writes.

Such realities are part of what gives rise to horrific scenarios of humans being wiped out or enslaved by machines. These risks are real too, but manageable, according to the firm.

"Here's the secret about AI that many of its proponents don't like to mention: It's not that smart - at least not yet," the paper notes. It's "still just following rules that humans devised."

AI manifested as "black boxes" may meet a wave of mistrust that limits its use, according to the paper. Vendors and users of AI likely will face growing pressure to deploy AI that is explainable and transparent. Doing so will reduce risks and help establish stakeholder trust, PwC opines. cfo.com

The Risk of Default Passwords

Most network and Internet of Things devices (IoT) have default passwords. A default password is usually used to allow the device to be accessed during its initial setup, or after resetting to factory defaults. The biggest risk is the fact that default passwords are ready available. All you need is the model and manufacturer to easily find the default password on the internet. There are even lists of these passwords available to the public as a hacking or technical support resource.

Routers and IP cameras have recently been in the news a lot due to the risk of default passwords. Network switches, IP phones and many other devices have the same risk. Both commercial and consumer devices are at risk. Some manufacture requires that the default password is changed at setup.

At home, check your router and change the default password. At work, check IP cameras, network switch and other network devices.

Solution Providers: Have a video or commercial you want to publish? Contact us 

Feds to Ramp Up Online Purchasing Presence
Online retail has been booming, with consumers flocking to the Internet to shop for almost anything. Online retail revenues in the U.S. would reach a projected US$445 billion in 2017 and jump to $600 billion by 2020, according to a report FTI Consulting released last fall.

The U.S. government has begun developing a program that would allow agencies to utilize e-commerce portals for purchases of commercial off the shelf (COTS) products.

The program could impact e-commerce in two significant ways.

First, it could provide a major boost to Internet marketing in general by putting a huge amount of federal government purchases in play for online procurement versus standard paper and contract-based purchasing. For example, office supplies could be acquired via Amazon, suggested Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, a key supporter of the program. However, other early reactions to the idea reflect concerns about concentrating federal e-commerce with a dominant provider.

Second, it could affect the way information technology providers market their offerings to federal agencies. It appears that government e-commerce purchasing eventually could include IT offerings, but a number of federal requirements would have to be addressed before any substantial volume of IT business would move through a digital procurement channel. ecommercetimes.com

A New Wave Of Bad Ads Is Hijacking Even Top-Tier Websites
A highly complex online advertising system makes it hard for big name publishers to find, let alone stop, misleading, malware-laden, and hard-to-close ads.

Over the past couple of weeks, internet users have been complaining of a new wave of hard-to-close, misleading, and malicious ads popping across websites big and small. Some of the ads even make it impossible for people to read news and other content by redirecting browsers to spammy sites or popping up mobile app store pages for undesired software.

Many social media posts lamented that even top-tier publishers like The New York Times and The Atlantic were willing to run such intrusive ads on their sites. But experts say the problem isn't with lack of discernment on the part of site publishers but with an extremely complex online advertising system that makes it hard for publishers involved to detect, let alone weed out, misleading and malware-laden ads.

To fight back, companies looking to weed out unscrupulous ads need to scan them using a variety of browsers from a variety of locations, says Murphy. OpenX works with The Media Trust and GeoEdge to review ad content for malware and other issues. Publishers are increasingly demanding that adtech companies they do business with root out such unscrupulous ads, he says. But experts say that, just as with other cybersecurity issues, it's ultimately a cat-and-mouse game between unscrupulous advertisers and those looking to stop them. fastcompany.com

Bolt launches an Amazon-like checkout experience for the rest of online retail

Stratford Man Sentenced - 18 Months in Prison for Role in Large-Scale $3.9M Fencing Operation
Running Boosters in Multiple States & Selling Online
Between January 2012 and December 2014, Matthew HARWOOD participated in a conspiracy to purchase stolen property from "boosters," who typically were shoplifters with opioid addictions, and then resell the property at online websites. HARWOOD, his co-conspirator Andrew Sacco, and others instructed the boosters to steal certain items from retail stores such as Petco, Staples, Walmart, and Bed Bath & Beyond, and paid cash for the stolen items at approximately one-third of their retail price. At times, HARWOOD provided expenses for car rentals and spending money for overnight or out-of-state trips to steal products.

Through this scheme, retailers lost more than $3.9 million. Andrew Sacco pleaded guilty to the same charges and, on December 6, 2017, was sentenced to 48 months of imprisonment. justice.gov

Hampstead, MD: Two men arrested for stealing computers from Walmart
Two men, one from Gwynn Oak and the other from Columbia, were arrested Friday after allegedly stealing electronics from the Hampstead Walmart. Taray Darnell Myers, 29, and Larry Chappell II, 31, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit theft and one count of theft of property valuing between $1,500 and $25,000. According to a receipt, the items Chappell and Myers allegedly stole from the Hampstead Walmart included more than 20 computers, wireless routers or monitors with a total value of $4,533.59. carrollcountytimes.com


Boca Raton, FL: Armed Florida man accused of stealing $1,000 in Star Wars PlayStation games
An accused repeat GameStop thief has been booked into the Palm Beach County Jail on allegations he stole nearly $1,000 worth of video games at gunpoint from a Boca Raton-area store last month. Aaron Villacampa, 28, was arrested Dec. 14 in Sunrise after he was caught with a concealed weapon in the Sawgrass Mills mall's GameStop. Employees recognized him as the suspect in at least two other armed robberies at Palm Beach County GameStops, sheriff's office records state. mypalmbeachpost.com

Plainfield, IL: Target Shoplifters Fled Police, Caused Crash
A woman and two men from Chicago have been charged with stealing from a Target and fleeing police Friday in Plainfield. Krystal Saylor, 30; David Ciukaj, 44; and Robert Anthony Poole, 43, were each charged with one felony count of retail theft. Saylor was also charged with numerous traffic offenses for a chase that ended in a three vehicle crash. Officers responded to a report of a retail theft at Target in Plainfield, where the suspects had stolen about $665 worth of property including baby formula, clothing, razors and multiple hair trimmers. The suspects hit two vehicles as they attempted to flee Police. All 3 suspects were taken into custody. nbcchicago.com


Closter, NJ: Police seek suspect in $500 Tide theft from Stop & Shop
Police are hoping a suspected shoplifter comes clean after taking nearly $500 worth of Tide from a local Stop and Shop. The theft occurred Jan. 19 around 9:30 p.m. at the Demarest Avenue store. The man, who police are still looking for, could be seen in surveillance footage pushing a cart filled with Tide detergent bottles. The suspect also may have been responsible for several other shoplifting incidents in Bergen County, police stated. northjersey.com

Huntington, WV: Walmart Employee charged with Grand Larceny in $1,400 theft

Napa, CA: 4 men arrested after Coach store $1,000 Grab& Run theft

Brentwood, CA: Police Nab Pair Who Stole $1,500 in Merchandise from Kohl's

Shootings, Choking & Deaths

San Francisco, CA: Homeless man, 2 others help save gas station clerk from choking attack
Three Good Samaritans are being thanked for helping save a woman being attacked. San Francisco police say the woman is a gas station store clerk. The victim told officers that a suspect started choking her unprovoked. The attack was caught on camera. It happened on the morning of Jan. 14 in the city's Fillmore District. The victim says a man had bought something at the Shell Gas Station, then returned about 20 minutes later and attacked her. Police identified the suspect as Brian Holste. kron4.com

Maplewood, MN: Liquor Store Armed Robbery Suspect Fatally Shot
by Store Employee
Police say a man who tried to hold up a liquor store in the Twin Cities metro has died after an employee shot him. Maplewood officers were called to Princess Liquors shortly before 8 p.m. Monday. Authorities say two suspects attempted to rob the liquor store and began to assault one of the employees. Another employee confronted the suspects and fired a gun, striking one of them. usnews.com

Indianapolis, IN: 15 to 20 shots fired outside a Liquor Store, both shooters only slightly wounded

Noxubee County, MS: C-Store Parking lot argument/ shooting leaves a male victim in stable condition
 

Robberies & Thefts

Wichita, KS: Wig Store Manager Shoots, Wounds Would-Be Robber
Wichita police says the shooting happened Monday at Honie's Wig & Beauty Supply. The Wichita Eagle reports that the manager fired two rounds. The would-be robber was struck in his chin and shoulder and was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police say the wounded man appeared to be in his late 30s. kansas.com


NSSF, ATF Jointly Launch Operation Secure Store
The National Shooting Sports Foundation and the Bureau of ATF announced today the launch of Operation Secure Store (OSS), a comprehensive joint initiative to help Federal Firearms Licensees (FFL) make well-informed security-related decisions to deter and prevent thefts. Central to the OSS initiative is NSSF's prior partnerships with ATF to help prevent thefts from FFLs through educational programming, such as the ongoing series of regional seminars hosted by ATF. Additionally, the organizations' matching rewards program becomes an anchor component of the program, effectively doubling the money offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for thefts from licensed retailers. prnewswire.com

Jared the Galleria of Jewelry in Newport News, VA reported a Grab & Run on 1/18, item valued at $12,999

Kay Jewelers in the Winslow Bay Commons, Mooresville, NC reported a Grab & Run on 1/20, items valued at $9,999

Kay Jewelers in the North Hampton Center, Taylors, SC reported a Grab & Run on 1/20, items valued at $10,799

Piercing Pagoda in the Cottonwood Mall, Albuquerque, NM reported a Grab & Run on 1/19, items valued at $700

Piercing Pagoda in the Ingram Park Mall, San Antonio, TX reported a Grab & Run on 1/20, item valued at $399

Zales in the Arlington Parks, Arlington TX reported a Grab & Run on 1/20, item valued at $21,119

Zales in the Outlet Village, Parks in Arlington, Arlington TX reported a Grab & Run on 1/20, item valued at $9,000

Milestonz in Stockton, CA reported an Armed Robbery on 1/22, cases smashed, no injuries, no total $
 

Skimming Theft

Credit card theft ringleader sentenced to 6yrs & 9 months
Hitting Airport Luggage & Mail Sorting Facility - Got $1.7M From ATMs
Quentin Pickett has been sentenced for operating a credit card theft ring that stole hundreds of credit cards that were being mailed to accountholders. Pickett and his co-conspirators stole credit cards from the secured baggage loading area of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and a private mail sorting facility. After stealing the credit cards, Pickett and his co-conspirators used them at ATMs and elsewhere, attempting over $2.3M in fraudulent transactions and succeeding in extracting approximately $1.7M in funds. justice.gov
 

Arson & Fire

Mobile, AL: Suspect arrested in Tire Store Arson
 

Sentencings & Arrests

Bakersfield Man Sentenced 2 yrs. 4 months - Stolen U.S. Mail & Possession of Stolen Credit Cards

Oakland County, MI: Man faces charges in 9 armed robberies

Houston, TX: Jury convicts CVS employee of $2,000 theft of Prescription Drugs; sentenced to 3 years' probation
 

Counterfeit

Baltimore, MD: US Customs & Border seizes nearly 3,000 counterfeit
stainless steel sinks
In fiscal year (FY) 2016, CBP and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) seized a record number of goods that violated Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in FY2016. The number of IPR seizures grew by nice percent in FY2016 to more than 31,560 and would have had a suggested retail price of more than $1.38 billion if authentic. homelandprepnews.com

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How to Lead a Productive Performance Review
Neither employees nor leaders really care for performance reviews. It's a hard, time-consuming process but that doesn't mean it should be avoided. Instead, it can be done better. Here's how you can lead a productive performance review for your team. Follow the four As

Don't Lose That 'A+' Employee to a Performance Rut
Not all employees are comfortable about opening up about why their work might be slipping, or hitting a rut. That's when leaders need to step in and make a change. Here's what you can do to help your employees get out of their performance rut and thrive in their role. Up the stakes

How to Receive Feedback Like a Champion: Surviving A Performance Review
While you may just want to get your performance review over with, you can survive and even leverage the feedback to thrive at your job. The key is proper preparation and make sure you follow these steps to improve job performance. Be curious to perceptions

Planning For Performance Reviews? Here's How to Share the Bad Stuff
The beginning of the year is when many companies conduct performance reviews. If you've ever led a review, chances are you've had to give negative feedback at some point. While it's never easy to give, how negative feedback is delivered can make a world of difference for the receiver. Use examples

Submit Your Group LP Selfie Today!

If you ever think your job is in jeopardy, then you're probably right. Hearing the footsteps isn't a pleasant thing, but not hearing them is a fatal blow and probably means you're not listening. It's always important to keep your ears to the floorboards and read your environment as best you can every day, because as we've seen over the last few years, no one is immune in this economy and what you've done for them today drives where you'll be tomorrow. That "Doing More With Less" philosophy isn't just an expression for the masses, it's for every executive in every job and what more can you be doing?

Just a Thought,
Gus

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