CA's Shoplifting & Burglary Surge Concentrated in a Few Regions
At the statewide level, shoplifting jumped 29% from 2021 to 2022

Testimony: Retail Theft in California

The Little Hoover Commission held the third of four hearings on Retail Theft last week, this one focused on reporting and tracking crime statistics related to Retail Theft.

PPIC policy director and senior fellow Magnus Lofstrom testified before the commission. Here are his prepared remarks.

Recent trends in retail theft vary across the state and by type of offense—but the data indicate a rise in shoplifting, especially in the Bay Area, and a broader rise in commercial burglary among urban counties. Concentration of increased retail theft in some areas, and likely underreporting of lower value incidents, plausibly contribute to differences in how retailers and residents perceive the problem of retail theft. More comprehensive data are needed.

It is important not to limit analyses of retail theft to shoplifting, especially given that Proposition 47 reclassified a number of property and drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.

At the statewide level, shoplifting jumped 29% from 2021 to 2022 but remains 8% below pre-pandemic levels and 17% below the 2014 rate. By contrast, commercial burglary has been ticking up in recent years; the rate rose by 16% between 2019 and 2022 and is 15% above the 2014 rate.

Only 3 of the 15 most populous counties saw increases in shoplifting from 2014 to 2022. San Mateo’s shoplifting rate almost doubled (up by 95%), while San Francisco and Alameda saw increases of 40% and 9%, respectively. Relative to pre-pandemic rates, 6 of the largest counties saw increases. Between 2014 and 2022, however, shoplifting rates fell at least 20% in 6 other populous counties and in 5 of the most populous counties from 2019 to 2022.

Increases in commercial burglary in urban counties are more widespread. Commercial burglary rose in 10 of the state’s largest counties between 2014 and 2022; the largest increases were in Orange (98%), Los Angeles (62%), and Santa Clara (61%). ppic.org


Coordination - Aggregation - Prosecution: Keys to Fighting Retail Crime?
Three Ways to Combat Retail Crime in 2024

Retail crime creates higher prices for consumers, results in stores having to close their doors, and communities left without vital goods and services.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has focused intensely on addressing retail crime since defining it as a national crisis in a letter to Congress in March 2022.

The Chamber recommends three key steps communities should take to combat retail crime:

Coordinate resources among business and law enforcement

To effectively fight rampant crime, local businesses must coordinate and share information on criminal strikes to discern trends and effective responses. This coordination can occur under the umbrella of a local chamber of commerce like the New Mexico Chamber of Commerce’s Organized Retail Crime Association or the Ohio Chamber’s Crime Task Force. Gathering local businesses, law enforcement, and policymakers in one setting dedicated to confronting crime fosters shared solutions that can increase community detection and quicken response efforts.

Aggregate offenses to punish repeat offenders

Prosecutors like San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephen have advised that state laws be changed to create a separate offense for the repeated stealing of certain amounts within specific time periods. By allowing for the aggregation of offenses against criminals, we can reduce the repeated store-by-store thefts plaguing our communities and driving businesses to close their doors.

Prosecute aggressively to combat lawlessness

Crucial to any anti-crime response is the local prosecutor. District Attorneys and County Attorneys are the gatekeepers of the criminal justice system, deciding whether arrested parties will be prosecuted. Lax prosecution of crimes against businesses sends the wrong message to business owners and communities, and only emboldens criminals. The business community should support legislation reducing the case backlog for state and local courts, thereby freeing up prosecutors’ ability to address current crimes.  uschamber.com


The Political Tides Have Turned on Crime
Democrats’ next crime fight: retail theft
Democrats want to talk tough on crime in an election year. Their target — shoplifting. Successfully pursuing retail theft could rob the GOP of a winning message on criminal justice and give Democrats a national roadmap for addressing the issue.

Now New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is waging her own war on shoplifters through a mix of tougher criminal penalties and funding in her $233 billion budget proposal. She wants to create new police teams to address the matter, while offering a tax credit for businesses to help bolster security measures.

The GOP has effectively linked Democrats to spikes in crime, and tackling shoplifting makes political sense: Voters see everyday items under lock and key or social media videos of thieves picking shelves clean. In New York, Republicans in suburban House districts like Reps. Anthony D’Esposito and Nick LaLota clinched victory in 2022 with a focus on crime. Across the country, California could be in for a change of direction, with many officials there citing retail theft as a breaking point for the state. Getting tougher policies on crime would be a departure for the state after years of rewritten sentencing laws favored by the left.

And with 213 seats up in the New York State Legislature, competitive House races throughout the state and a fierce fight underway for the White House, party leaders believe it is crucial for Democrats to reclaim ground on the issue of crime — particularly since they are often divided over other law enforcement matters.

Retail theft, in part, could be sustaining the concerns that voters have consistently registered with crime as Democrats in blue states have spent years trying to scale back tough-on-crime laws to expand rights to defendants in low-level infractions.  politico.com


Crime & Violence Forces Another San Francisco Store to Shut Down
San Francisco’s oldest toy store closing due to inflation, 'perils and violence' of crime downtown
The oldest toy store in San Francisco announced this week that it is shutting down due to the rampant crime and violence in the city’s streets, and because of inflation. Jeffrey’s Toys, the downtown San Francisco toy store that inspired Pixar’s classic "Toy Story," announced on Friday that it will be closing permanently at the end of February.

The business' attorney, Ken Sterling, told The San Francisco Chronicle, "The store has been struggling for a number of years, due to the perils and violence of the downtown environment, inflation, the decrease in consumer spending and the demise of retail across the world."

Stern added "The family is saddened it has come to this and we’ve explored all other options to try and keep the business going." He also noted that San Francisco officials have "their work cut out for them on how to revitalize what was once a vibrant and fun downtown experience."

Last month, Jeffrey’s Toys co-owner Greg Luhn all but predicted the demise of his business, telling a local ABC affiliate in December the store’s future would be decided by last-minute holiday sales.

Luhn had also previously expressed worry about stores like his in the city being shuttered. He told a local NBC affiliate in December, "We’re one of the oldest family-run stores in the city, but all of them are slowly disappearing. I hope things will change, but I know that we just can’t keep covering the loss every month without help from the city."  foxnews.com


Will Small Stores Benefit from Major Retailers' Anti-Theft Measures?
Small retailers ‘will be a haven for shoppers who hate anti-theft tactics’ while major chains jump to lock up products
Major retailers may be set to lose customers to smaller businesses that are refusing to enforce strict anti-theft measures, according to researchers.

Molly Burke, senior retail analyst at Software Advice explained that there are numerous low-cost tactics that small businesses can employ that are effective and may even see some shoppers turn their backs on large chains for a nicer shopping experience.

Complaints about certain anti-theft measures that are being implemented at major retailers such as locked-up items and receipt checks are flooding social media. Some shoppers have even threatened to boycott stores that implement these techniques.

While some small businesses may implement some of the other security measures like locking away items, Burke has reassured customers that the culture of small businesses means it is unlikely to become the norm.

This means that those shoppers turning away from large chains like Walmart, Target, and CVS because of these issues will find a haven with smaller stores more in need of customers. the-sun.com


10% of All Mass Shootings Take Place in Illinois
Illinois and Chicago routinely lead the nation in mass shootings
In the last 11 years, Illinois accounted for close to 10% of all mass shootings in the nation, with almost 490 across the state, killing 356 people and wounding more than 2,080 others. That’s more than California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania and New York — all more populous than Illinois.

And perhaps not surprisingly, the data points to Chicago as the main source for the grim record. The city saw 34 mass shootings just in 2023, resulting in 27 deaths and 143 injuries, according to GVA data, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot in a single event, not including the gunman.

Those totals pushed Chicago into the top spot nationally last year, findings closely supported by the city’s own database, which showed 32 mass shootings. In the decade worth of data reviewed by the Tribune, Chicago tallied 234 deaths and more than 1,560 injuries in 365 shootings.

At a rate of one mass shooting every 11 days, no other city in the country even comes close. The next three cities combined didn’t have as many in the same period. In fact, if Chicago were a state, it would rank only behind California in total mass events across the decade. chicagotribune.com


Four Off-Duty Security Officers Targeted and Murdered in January
According to law enforcement, three off-duty California private security officers and an Ohio off-duty security officer may have all been targeted and murdered shortly after leaving work this month.

Keith Longwood, a California security guard who often worked at nightclubs and apartment complexes had left work on January 18th, and several hours later was found dead inside his vehicle. Police say that he was shot in the head. Investigators now believe that his death was related to his work.

A second California security officer was shot and killed in Hawthorne during an altercation outside a restaurant. A third California security officer identified as Carlos Beltran was killed in Los Angeles. His family isn't sure why it happened, and neither are police investigators.

In the Dayton Ohio area, Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck recently explained to local reporters why he thinks the shooting of a local security officer who had just left work was targeted. The off-duty nightclub security guard was shot and killed inside a vehicle early Monday morning.  privateofficer.org


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25% of Front-Line Workers Feel Unsafe
Front-Line Workers Are Quitting at High Rates
Forty-one percent of front-line employees and 38 percent of front-line managers have changed jobs in the last 12 months, according to a global survey.

Low pay was a significant reason for quitting. With the recent market trend of employers raising pay, both workers and managers largely felt they could find better-paying jobs elsewhere. They also spoke about overdelivering and sacrificing personal time off when key operational problems went unfixed.

Front-line workers feeling the weight of inflation the most were those in:

• Construction (33 percent).
• Logistics (33 percent).
• Retail (31 percent).
• Health care (18 percent).

Being understaffed was the biggest stressor for front-line managers, the second most stressful job aspect for employees and the main factor limiting job productivity, the report found.

Workplace Safety a Growing Concern Among Employees

Nearly 1 in 4 front-line workers said they feel unsafe at work, with many experiencing growing aggression from customers, according to the Beekeeper report. Employees’ need for safety and security may be poorly understood by HR and corporate staff, who rank it as a much lower priority than their front-line colleagues do.

The findings align with a 2023 survey of 1,000 front-line workers by San Mateo, Calif.-based security platform company Verkada, which found:

• About 33 percent of front-line workers felt unsafe at their workplace in the past year.
• 40 percent reported feeling more worried about their physical safety than they were a year ago.
• 49 percent of retail workers said theft and vandalism are on the rise.
• 76 percent of employers had a security incident in the past year.

How to Retain Front-Line Talent:  shrm.org


Walmart Superstore Manager: The High Demand & High Pay Retail Job
The $400,000 Job Without a College Degree

Walmart is giving store managers higher bonuses, stock grants as the job becomes more difficult in the e-commerce era

Amazon is cutting hundreds of jobs. So are Macy’s and Wayfair. But one retail worker is still in high demand: Walmart superstore manager. Walmart is giving bigger bonuses and adding stock awards to their annual pay packages, pushing the total compensation for the best ones to more than $400,000 a year.

The retail giant has thousands of store managers who act as midlevel executives. Each can often oversee a store with 350 workers and $100 million in annual revenue. Many start as clerks and climb the ranks without college degrees.

Store managers will now be able to earn up to $20,000 in annual stock grants and an up-to-200% bonus each year. The average base salary for a Walmart store manager is around $128,000. That means a successful manager of a large Walmart store can earn up to $404,000 a year in total compensation.

The job has become more complex in recent years, said John Furner, Walmart U.S. chief executive. Store managers are now evaluated on and responsible for e-commerce orders sourced from their stores, said Furner, who once worked as a Walmart store manager. wsj.com


Retail is Back in Business & Landlords End COVID Rent Discounts
For Retailers, Business Is Back and Landlords Say No More Rent Discounts

Landlords’ increasing leverage is sign of retail real estate’s recent strength

Retail property owners are shedding the discounts and other concessions they offered struggling tenants during the depths of the pandemic, the latest sign that competition for retail real estate is intensifying.

Many landlords slashed rent prices as they struggled to fill empty storefronts during the first year of the pandemic. Some felt compelled to accept a portion of monthly sales instead of a fixed rent amount from tenants whose businesses collapsed because of government-mandated closures and social distancing.

These arrangements helped retailers stay afloat, and prevented landlords from losing valued tenants. Now, landlords are having a much easier time filling prime retail space and are far less likely to agree to these concessions, said Ed Coury, senior managing director at retail-brokerage firm RCS Real Estate Advisors.

Landlords’ increasing leverage is another sign of retail real estate’s recent strength. Store openings outpaced closures for the second straight year in 2023 after years of net closures, according to research firm Coresight Research. Consumer spending remained resilient last year despite high inflation and recession concerns, and Americans’ views on the economy are improving at the start of 2024.

This, coupled with scant new construction of retail real estate, leaves landlords optimistic that retailers will be vying for limited available space for the foreseeable future.  wsj.com


2024 Could be a Mixed Bag for Retail - But There Are Positive Indicators
Consumer Spending And Retail Health Into 2024 Remains Anyone’s Guess
Retail and consumer spending news continues to be a mix of good news / bad news. For every positive indicator, there seems to be a negative one that offsets. This is true across economic indicators related to retail and consumer spending, all the way into the actions being taken by retail winners and losers alike.

The consumer scene is not settled, and retailers depend on healthy spending to be able to move ahead with confidence. However, despite continued uncertainty and conflicting news, some retailers are simply not waiting for the dust to settle or for the take on 2024 to become clear. And ultimately, that may be the biggest difference you’ll see between a retail winner and a loser.  forbes.com


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Retail DDoS Attacks Surge 127%
StormWall reveals surge in DDoS attacks on government, retail, and energy sectors in Q4 2023

StormWall’s analysis of Q4 2023 DDoS attacks reveals a sharp increase in threats, especially targeting government, retail, and energy sectors.

The government sector saw a 162% year-over-year rise in DDoS attacks in Q4 2023, making up 21% of all incidents. This surge is mainly due to geopolitical tensions, like those in the Middle East. In Israel, 42% of attacks targeted government websites, reflecting the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The retail industry experienced a 127% increase in attacks from the previous year, accounting for 17% of all DDoS incidents, StormWall data shows. This rise is linked to major shopping events like Black Friday and the holiday season. The energy sector also saw a significant increase in Q4 2023, with a 109% rise in cyber attacks year-over-year, targeting critical infrastructure like power grids and IoT devices.

Attack methods are evolving

DDoS attacks are growing more complex, StormWall’s data says, using advanced methods like multi-vector attacks, DNS amplification, TCP direct-path, and application layer attacks.

Another worrying trend StormWall has identified is Hyper-Volumetric HTTP DDoS Attacks. These attacks exploit the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset flaw and can reach hundreds of millions of requests per second. This volume is much more than what applications with insufficient protection can handle.

What’s more, StormWall reports a trend towards shorter “hit and run” style attacks, which test defenses before launching more sustained offensives. The majority of DDoS attacks repelled by StormWall’s network lasted 30 minutes or less.

Geographically, Israel emerged as a top target in Q4 2023, facing 10.6% of all DDoS attacks, a major increase from less than 1% in the previous quarter. Other heavily targeted countries included China (12.6%), the USA (12.2%), and India (11.7%), in first, second and third place respectively. dailyhostnews.com


Risks of Relying on Third-Party Vendors
Third-party risk management best practices and why they matter
With organizations increasingly relying on third-party vendors, upping the third-party risk management (TPRM) game has become imperative to prevent the fallout of third-party compromises.

Third-party risks

SecurityScorecard recently found that 98% of organizations are connected with at least one third-party vendor that has suffered a data breach in the last two years.

When letting a third-party vendor access an organization’s network, potential vulnerabilities become their shared problem and a compromise can have serious consequences for both. It can result in:

• Customer service disruption
• Violation of regulations or laws
• Reputational damage
• Supply chain disruption
• Financial fraud or exposure

One third-party compromise in particular marked the year 2023: A series of data breaches occurred due to the mass exploitation of a vulnerability in MOVEit, a popular file transfer software, leading to data theft from various international government entities and businesses.

Why you must do TPRM

Third-party risk management offers numerous advantages for companies. It enables organizations to avoid business disruptions by monitoring third-party vendor availablity, thus providing early warning signals to allow executives to take prompt action.   helpnetsecurity.com


Secret Service Cyber Investigations Committee
Secret Service to revive the Cyber Investigations Advisory Board

The federal advisory committee will offer expert and industry advice to the agency.

The United States Secret Service is reestablishing a federal committee to advise the agency on cyber investigations, according to a notice on the Federal Register.

The Cyber Investigations Advisory Board aims to be an industry and expert advisory panel for the Secret Service, according to the notice, which is scheduled to be officially published on Friday.

The office was first established in 2020 as a 16-member federal advisory committee with the goal of providing “outside strategic direction to the Secret Service’s investigative mission.” The board was created in part to overhaul the agency’s investigation practices, officials said at the time.

The advisory board will be the main avenue “through which senior industry and other experts can engage, collaborate, and advise the USSS regarding cybersecurity and cybercrime issues,” according to the notice. cyberscoop.com


Cybercriminals embrace smarter strategies, less effort
Like drug cartels, cybergangs are forming sophisticated organizations as joining like-minded actors can be incredibly advantageous. This spans globally with countries potentially helping each other to advance common goals and interests. We’ll see more hackers for trade, crews looking to expand their monopolies, and cyberwarfare alliances.

In 2024, enterprising threat actors may target more publicly traded companies to gain insights to cheat the stock market or plan their attacks and sell their stash before value nosedives. Rather than breach an organization and play in the underground with stolen data, threat actors could leverage data extraction and their talents in plain sight as everyday investors.

“Today, perpetrators can come from anywhere in the world and bring with them robust resources and expertise,” added Jim Steven, Head of Crisis and Data Response Services at Experian Global Data Breach Resolution in the United Kingdom. “There are many global crime syndicates and nation-backed operations, so companies need to invest in sophisticated prevention and response methods to protect themselves.” helpnetsecurity.com


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