Macy's RFID-ORC Efforts Making More Headlines

RFID Technology vs. ORC
Macy's Cranking up RFID Use to Combat Organized Retail Crime
Macy's has cranked up its use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology to protect its assets as reports of high-profile retail thefts are increasing across the U.S., according to a report in The Wall Street Journal Tuesday (Feb. 8).

When retailers use RFID tags on their merchandise, they can access real-time information on where and when products are being stolen, Joe Coll, vice president of asset protection, operations and strategy at Macy's, said in the report. RFID tags can also help the company better target its security protocols, he said.

"RFID plays a huge part for us from an investigative standpoint," Coll said Tuesday on a webinar hosted by trade publication RFID Journal.

The National Retail Federation said last year that almost two-thirds (64%) of loss-prevention experts have made organized retail crime - where items are stolen to be resold - more of a priority as the number of incidents have increased. That includes so-called "flash mob" thefts at Nordstrom Inc., Best Buy Co. Inc., Louis Vuitton and other stores.

RFID offers detailed information on the stock-keeping unit, size and color of stolen items that can be given to law enforcement, he said. The tags are often stickers with a metallic overlay attached to an item, said Sandeep Unni, senior director analyst in Gartner's retail industry research practice, per WSJ.

Macy's started using RFID in 2013, collecting data when the chip goes through "smart exits" equipped with sensors, said Coll, allowing the company to access video footage to figure out who took the item and where they took it.

Simon Property Group CEO David Simon points the finger at local officials for failing to act quickly enough to prevent or slow down the organized retail crime trend.

"I don't think it's an industry issue," he said. "I think it's a local jurisdiction issue and it's a nationwide issue." Simon told analysts that his company was doing better than most in fighting the problem, but was still being victimized. pymnts.com

Progressive DAs Driving Crime Spike?
'Rogue' prosecutors driving violent crime surge, not guns: Expert

Progressive district attorneys are turning their cities into "hellholes," according to former prosecutor

Soft-on-crime district attorneys across the country are to blame for a spike in violent crime - not firearms, a former federal prosecutor told Fox News Digital.

"Guns don't commit crimes, neither do knives and hammers, people do," said Charles Stimson, now a senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. "It's a red herring to focus on guns rather than the harder issue of how to enforce the law fairly and hold criminals accountable."

Across the country homicides were up 30% in 2020 compared to 2019, according to FBI data. The murder rate in 22 major U.S. cities was up 44% in 2021 compared to 2019 and 5% compared to 2020, according to a study from the non-partisan Council on Criminal Justice.

Stimson blamed much of these increases on progressive district attorneys who have weakened consequences for a range of serious crimes in mostly Democratic-run cities.

"It is not true that crime is rising in every big city - it's true that it's rising in cities that have elected rogue prosecutors," Stimson said, specifically highlighting the policies of George Gascón in Los Angeles, Chesa Boudin in San Francisco, Kim Foxx in Chicago, Larry Krasner in Philadelphia and others.

They have all argued that most misdemeanors should not be prosecuted, lobbied for lighter sentences for serious felonies and pushed for the elimination of cash bail. The result has been mass shoplifting, open prostitution, drug markets and, in many cases, record numbers of shootings and murders, he said. foxnews.com

NYC's Crime Crisis
74% of NYC Voters Say Crime Is a Serious Problem in the City, an All-Time High

74% of NYC voters now say crime is a "very serious" problem in the city -- in more than two decades of polling, that number had never topped 50%

Nearly three-quarters of New York City voters consider crime in the city a "very serious" problem, according to a new Quinnipiac Poll released Wednesday -- the highest percentage in polling dating to the late 1990s.

And it's not just a record, pollsters said -- at 74%, it's fully 24 points higher than the previous high.

Some 43% of NYC voters said they consider the city less safe than other big cities, also an all-time record for the poll and nearly triple the old record. About 65% said they personally worry about becoming the victim of a crime, the highest since the question was first asked in the spring of 1999.

But voters seem to be giving new mayor Eric Adams a pass so far on the surge in violence; 49% approve of his handling of crime, while 35% disapprove. Another 58% said they were very or somewhat confident that Adams could reduce gun violence in the streets. nbcnewyork.com

'No neighborhood is safe,' Crime up in nearly every NYC precinct: latest stats

Sharpton assails NYC's crime spike: 'They're locking up my toothpaste

Behind the Scenes with NFL's Chief Security Officer
'NFL 360': Cathy Lanier shares how she handles security for the NFL

Veteran law enforcement official Cathy Lanier was hired by the NFL in 2016 as Senior Vice President of Security. She previously served as Washington D.C. Chief of Police.

As the league's chief security officer, Lanier supervises all operations and activities of the NFL security department. She oversees coordination with the league office and the 32 clubs and also works with federal, state, and local law entities to ensure the security of the NFL's venues, fans, players, staff and infrastructure. She is also the primary supervisor of investigative programs, event security including the Super Bowl and international games, game integrity programs, and department administration.

In this 8-minute video, learn more about Lanier's background and how she handles security for the NFL. nfl.com

The Federal Security Effort
DHS Partners with State and Local Officials to Secure Super Bowl LVI
February 9, 2022 - Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas traveled this week to Los Angeles, California to meet with state and local law enforcement and the National Football League (NFL) to review Department of Homeland Security (DHS) operations to help ensure the safety and security of employees, players, and fans during Super Bowl LVI.  

DHS support for Super Bowl LVI includes more than 500 DHS personnel providing extensive air and maritime security resources; anti-human trafficking prevention and enforcement support; intellectual property enforcement; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives detection technologies; venue, cyber, and infrastructure security assessments; intelligence analysis and threat assessments; and real-time situational awareness reporting for our partners.

As with past Super Bowls, this event was voluntarily submitted to DHS for a risk assessment. DHS classified this event as a Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) Level 1, meaning that DHS has determined this event to be significant, with national and international importance, and requiring extensive federal support.

Several DHS agencies are working with state and local partners and the NFL on a range of initiatives to ensure the safety and security of Super Bowl LVI.  dhs.gov

'Making Sure This Is The Most Safe City In The United States'
Law Enforcement And NFL Tighten Security For Upcoming Super Bowl
On Tuesday, the National Football League coordinated with local state and federal law enforcement agencies to ensure public safety is on top of the minds of authorities with the Super Bowl quickly approaching.

"What you will see is hundreds of officers deployed on game day and this week to secure the campus," said Inglewood Police Department Chief Mark Fronterotta. "And it will be a layered effect of security that will come through all the way as you get to the game."

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas added that his agency will be monitoring "land, sea, air and cyber environments" to ensure those landscapes are also safe and secure. At least 500 members of his department are devoted to safety for the big game, including agents focused on ferreting out cyber threats and preventing human trafficking.

Other federal agencies such as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that agency has brought resources from across the country to ensure the safety of attendees and residents.

Federal and local authorities said they will also combat human trafficking and the trafficking of stolen and counterfeit merchandise around SoFi Stadium where many vendors, tourists, and fans will be gathering. newsbreak.com

Authorities: No known threats to Super Bowl or LA region

NFL Website: Super Bowl LVI Security Procedures

Read Part I of the D&D Daily's Super Bowl Security Coverage here
 

US: 78.8M Cases - 935.9K Dead - 49.2M Recovered
Worldwide: 404.3M Cases - 5.7M Dead - 324.2M Recovered

Former Senior Loss Prevention Executive
Know of any fallen LP exec? Let's remember & recognize.

Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 346   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 635
*Red indicates change in total deaths

More Promising Data as Omicron Fades
Covid-19 hospitalizations drop below 100,000 in the US
Covid-19 hospitalizations are dropping quickly in the United States, but a heavy burden persists, and the nation's health care workers are exhausted under the strain.

For the first time in more than a month, there are fewer than 100,000 hospital beds in use for patients with Covid-19 nationwide, according to data from the US Department of Health and Human Services.

That's a 38% drop from a few weeks ago, when Covid-19 hospitalizations reached a peak of more than 160,000 beds in use at one time.

Despite the promising trends, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, says it's still too soon to change guidance and loosen Covid-19 prevention restrictions. cnn.com

States Rapidly Dropping Mask Mandates
Statewide mask mandates are lifting in many states as Omicron wanes
From Massachusetts to New York to Illinois, states were rapidly lifting mask mandates as the Omicron wave recedes and governors come under intense pressure from Americans who are exhausted by the pandemic.

Those states and Rhode Island joined a growing list Wednesday that included California and Oregon, places that once enforced strict protocols but are now shifting as case numbers plummet and polling shows bipartisan pandemic fatigue. The moves will step up the pressure on the Biden administration, and in particular on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to offer new guidance to the states on mask wearing and other mitigation measures.

The White House has been quietly meeting with outside health experts to plan a pandemic exit strategy and a transition to a "new normal," but the behind-the-scenes effort is crashing into the public reality of blue-state governors have gotten ahead of President Biden by suddenly abandoning their mask mandates.

The Massachusetts school mask mandate will end on Feb. 28, Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, said. Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York, also a Democrat, also announced that her state's move to end its mask-or-vaccination indoor mandate will take effect this week, but has said she needs more time to make a decision on masks in schools.

The governor of Rhode Island, also a Democrat, announced Wednesday that state's indoor mask mandate will end Friday. He also announced plans to lift the masking requirement in schools on March 4 and leave it up to districts afterward.

In California, officials announced Monday that the state will end a universal indoor mask mandate next week, and are reviewing the mask mandate for schools. nytimes.com

Pharmacies Feeling the Pain of Two-Year Pandemic
Angry Customers, More Work and Longer Hours Strain Pharmacists

Pharmacists and technicians, who have played a critical role in administering Covid-19 tests and vaccines, say they are burned out nearly two years into the pandemic.

Nearly two years into the pandemic, pharmacists and technicians across the nation are under intense strain as their jobs shift from filling prescriptions and counseling patients to administering Covid-19 vaccines and tests, handing out masks and dealing with increasingly angry customers.

The situation has been exacerbated by a labor shortage that has squeezed most industries and that has resulted in droves of nurses and caretakers leaving their posts in a pandemic that has pushed them to the brink.

Large retail pharmacy chains have tried to respond, with some reducing store hours, increasing starting wages, offering more breaks and giving out bonuses to retain employees. But customers have felt the impact, with some experiencing disruptions in vaccine appointments, longer lines to pick up prescriptions and frustration over securing masks and at-home virus tests.

The situation is worrying the pharmacy industry. Scott Knoer, the executive vice president and chief executive of the American Pharmacists Association, said inadequate staffing posed serious health risks by increasing the chances that workers make mistakes while filling prescriptions or inoculating patients. A survey released last month from the association found that 74 percent of respondents said they did not think they had sufficient time to safely perform patient care and clinical duties.

Some of the biggest pharmacy chains have hired thousands to deal with the increased workloads, but company representatives say stores are still struggling to fill open positions. nytimes.com

Nike Under Fire for Vaccine Policies
Nike employees are calling out the company's contradicting vaccine policies

While corporate workers are getting the ax for not getting vaccinated, warehouse workers are exempt.

Nike's office workers - unless they receive a religious or medical exemption - must be vaccinated and provide proof to the company. Kerkering is among an unknown number of workers who have been terminated for not complying. In his case, he was fired for refusing to share his vaccination status, which he chooses to keep private.

At the same time, employees in the company's distribution centers, who are in closer contact with one another, aren't required to be vaccinated. Nike also dropped a weekly testing requirement for distribution-center workers two weeks ago, according to current and former employees, an industry source, and a corporate document viewed by Insider.

Five current and former office employees who spoke with Insider criticized the company for its stance, which they found especially baffling given that Nike's office workforce remains remote. Nike's situation illustrates how difficult it's become for corporate America to figure out enforcing vaccination policies. businessinsider.com

COVID's Long-Term Impact on Prisons
Breaking point: What is the future of COVID and incarceration?

Two years of COVID has broken down prisoners and carceral systems. Advocates have called for decarceration as a long-term solution.

Incarcerated people have been acutely impacted by the highs and lows of the pandemic. Not only must they cope with the fear of getting ill and dying, or suffering from long-term COVID symptoms, but the pandemic has meant periodically losing much of the few freedoms they still have, such as outdoor recreation time and family calls and visits.

One study using mortality records from the Florida State Department of Corrections found that COVID-19 led to a four-year decline in life expectancy in Florida's prison population. The North Carolina Department of Public Safety (DPS) has reported that 57 incarcerated people have died of COVID in North Carolina's prisons.

Public officials who have declared COVID endemic are "basically admitting that prisons are going to be more dangerous in terms of health risks than they've been before," Bertram said.

The way prisons have handled COVID thus far is likely to have a lasting effect on incarcerated people. Some people who contracted COVID while they were incarcerated will experience long COVID, but even if they didn't get sick, the pandemic "absolutely makes it worse in terms of just the trauma of prison," Finholt said. northcarolinahealthnews.org

OSHA Presses on with COVID Vaccine Mandate
Despite the Supreme Court's recent ruling, OSHA plans to press on with vaccine mandate regulations.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker will lift indoor mask mandate on Feb. 28

Minneapolis and St. Paul lift vaccine-or-test mandate for restaurants, bars

Boston winds down proof-of-vaccine mandate

Biden administration cautious about easing masking & other COVID measures

Q&A with Tony D'Onofrio
Prosegur's Tony D'Onofrio On The Future Of Retail

David Liu interviews Tony D'Onofrio, Global Retail Influencer & Prosegur's CEO & Managing Director, Global Retail Business Unit

Tony D'Onofrio is the global CEO of Prosegur's Global Retail Business, where he regularly engages with the world's largest retailers to provide innovative and holistic security solutions. Tony is consistently listed as a Top Global Retail Influencer and publishes on multiple global platforms. His career has extended decades and includes executive roles in both security and information technologies companies.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to the retail security industry?

Ioften tell audiences that I was probably was born in a retail store. My first real job during high school and university was working in a retail store for nine years. In that environment I was exposed to running multiple departments across the entire store and learned retail operations from the ground up. Following this in-store experience, I transitioned to working with technology companies on both traditional IT and security for improving store operations in a career that I have enjoyed every single second.

The Pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives. One of them is the increased use of e-commerce solutions for retail. From your perspective, how are large retail outlets adapting to the new realities created by the pandemic?

The pandemic accelerated digital transformation trends that were already underway by 5 to 10 years according to McKinsey. Retailers that were investing heavily in omnichannel experiences prior to the pandemic thrived and will emerge stronger out of the pandemic. New services extending retail into the parking lot are here to stay.

E-commerce is just another channel. Pure play online retailers including Amazon are aggressively opening physical stores. Turns out the most profitable place for retailers was and remains the physical store. Online commerce adds substantial logistics costs and without free shipping limits engagement with consumers. Physical stores are now becoming micro-fulfillment centers for e-commerce, bringing shipping capabilities closer to the consumer, and reducing logistic costs.

The new reality is that you need both e-commerce and physical stores to drive a more profitable harmonized across channels future of retail. Read complete interview here

$1.5 Million Apple Fraud Scheme
iPhone counterfeiting case highlights risks of supply/support chain manipulation

The conspirators returned fake iPhones with legitimate IMEI numbers to Apple for warranty replacements, which they then sold.

The sentencing of Haiteng Wu on February 2, 2022, for his participation in a three-plus-year conspiracy to defraud Apple out of just over $1.5 million shines the light on criminals who operate in the margins of warranty fulfillment of consumer products, such as the iPhone. All in, the criminals were able to garner 2,500 new iPhones for subsequent resale and had attempted to acquire 600 more but failed due to Apple quality control rejecting the warranty submission.

Wu and other conspirators received shipments of inauthentic iPhones from Hong Kong. Those phones contained spoofed IMEI numbers and serial numbers that corresponded with authentic in-warranty iPhones. The conspirators then returned the inauthentic phones to Apple, claiming that the phones were legitimate, in-warranty phones, all in an effort to receive authentic replacement iPhones from Apple. The fraudulently obtained authentic iPhones were then shipped back to conspirators overseas, including in Hong Kong.

CISO brand protection takeaway

Brand protection involves counterfeit detection as well as identification of the support infrastructure required to manipulate company processes, such as warranty fulfillment. This case highlights the need to protect the key components of the fulfillment process - in this instance IMEI and serial numbers, which were key to Wu's criminal success.

What the court proceedings in this instance don't reveal to us is how the co-conspirators were able to acquire active the IMEI and serial numbers of those known iPhones. Were they acquired by deduction by Wu or via an as yet unidentified insider? csoonline.com

Modernizing Security Training
Online security officer training proposal clears House committee

The measure is an effort to 'modernize' the security training and certification process.

The certification of security officers in Florida could soon become an online process under a bill OK'd Monday by a House committee. State law currently requires aspiring security officers - armed and unarmed - to undergo an in-person training course before certification.

The proposal (HB 1233), however, would shift unarmed training online. Armed courses, meanwhile, may feature at most 21 hours of online instruction. The rest of the training, including the firearm portion, would remain in-person.

Fine's proposal comes after Florida permitted aspiring officers to acquire their certification online amid the early stages of the pandemic. The measure would revive the online option and "modernize" the process, Fine said.

California and Georgia are among several states that permit online training for unarmed security officers, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. "It worked quite well," Fine told committee members. "This would simply allow us to continue with what we saw work during the COVID-19 pandemic." floridapolitics.com

Valentine's Day Retail Spending - 2nd Highest On Record
NRF: Americans to Spend $23.9 Billion on Valentine's Day This Year
Valentine's Day spending is expected to reach $23.9 billion this year, up from $21.8 billion in 2021 and the second-highest year on record, according to the annual survey released today by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.

More than half (53 percent) of U.S. consumers plan to celebrate the holiday in 2022, up from 52 percent in 2021. More than three-quarters (76 percent) of those celebrating indicate it is important to do so given the current state of the pandemic.

According to the survey, shoppers expect to spend an average of $175.41 per person on Valentine's Day gifts, up from $164.76 in 2021. The increase comes as many intend to spend more on significant others or spouses. nrf.com

Bulk Gift Cards Risk Expands?
Kroger and Blackhawk Team on Mastercard and Visa Bulk Prepaid Cards
The Kroger Co. has expanded its longtime partnership with worldwide branded payments provider Blackhawk Network to offer Mastercard and Visa bulk prepaid cards through Blackhawk's software-as-a-service-based Velocity B2B end-to-end gift card services. The new offering will help Kroger ramp up its growth in the B2B gift card space by giving businesses an effective way to reward or incentivize employees, and providing further options for organizations that want to help those in need.

Suitable for businesses and charities, Kroger's Mastercard and Visa prepaid cards can be used where Mastercard and Visa are accepted, in store or online. Once an organization is approved, ordering is easy and customizable. Available gift card denominations range from $20 to $500, and the cards can be delivered to recipients when and how companies want, anywhere in the United states. The gift cards are issued by the U.S. Bank National Association in accordance with a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. or Mastercard International, and can be used only in the United States. progressivegrocer.com

Whittling Away at the Edges
Aldi to open 150 Stores in 2022
Small box German retailers Aldi and Lidl whittling away at the edges. They disrupted the UK's grocery industry.

Prices climbed 7.5% in January compared with last year, continuing inflation's fastest pace in 40 years

Consumer Confidence Remains High Despite Pandemic Uncertainty