Sensormatic Solutions to showcase connected, scalable solutions at EuroShop 2020

New product innovations and partnership with Intel drive operational excellence and elevate the shopper experience

Johnson Controls announced today its leading global retail solutions portfolio, Sensormatic Solutions, will showcase its latest product innovations at EuroShop 2020, 16-20 February 2020 at the Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre in Germany. By combining insights into retail inventory, shopper traffic and loss prevention, Sensormatic Solutions powers operational excellence at scale and helps retailers create unique shopper experiences.

Sensormatic Solutions continues to fast forward retail with its portfolio of smart, connected and scalable solutions. The technologies that will be on display at this year's show leverage the latest in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), smart sensors, and video analytics, and bring to life the new collaboration with Intel Corporation. businesswire.com
 

'The Golden Age of White Collar Crime'

As the FBI, IRS and other federal agencies' have seen their investigative resources dwindle, prosecution of white-collar fraud has plummeted in recent years

In January 2019, white-collar prosecutions fell to their lowest level since researchers started tracking them in 1998. Even within the dwindling number of prosecutions, most are cases against low-level con artists and small-fry financial schemes. Since 2015, criminal penalties levied by the Justice Department have fallen from $3.6 billion to roughly $110 million. Illicit profits seized by the Securities and Exchange Commission have reportedly dropped by more than half. In 2018, a year when nearly 19,000 people were sentenced in federal court for drug crimes alone, prosecutors convicted just 37 corporate criminals who worked at firms with more than 50 employees.

Tax evasion, to pick just one crime concentrated among the wealthy, already siphons up to 10,000 times more money out of the U.S. economy every year than bank robberies. In 2017, researchers estimated that fraud by America's largest corporations cost Americans up to $360 billion annually between 1996 and 2004. That's roughly two decades' worth of street crime every single year.

Over the last four decades, the agencies responsible for investigating elite and white-collar crime - roughly speaking, the IRS, SEC, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency and FBI - have seen their enforcement divisions starved into irrelevance. More than a third of the FBI investigators who patrol Wall Street were reassigned between 2001 and 2008. Enforcement funding at the IRS has fallen by 23 percent over the last decade. And every time a scandal exposes the government's inadequacy, Congress steps in to squeeze the regulators even harder.

Since 2009, the percentage of employees at large companies who report that they've been pressured to commit ethical breaches has doubled. In a 2015 study, more than half the auditors for the country's largest companies said they had been asked to falsify internal audit reports. In Ernst & Young's 2016 Global Fraud Survey, 32 percent of American managers said they were comfortable behaving unethically to meet financial targets. huffpost.com

Demand for narcotics, cough syrup driving violent crime at California pharmacies

Armed robberies up 132% over 3 years - Pharmacy break-ins up 49%

California pharmacy break-ins have increased by 49% in between 2015 and 2018, from 114 break-ins to 265, according to data from the state's Board of Pharmacy.

When it comes to robberies and armed robberies, the state reported more than 260 cases in 2018, which shows an increase of 132% over the same three years.

These types of crimes are on the rise in the Golden state. The California Pharmacists Association previously lobbied for a bill to make it a harsher crime to steal cough medicine, but the legislation did not make it pass then-Governor Jerry Brown's desk.

"If we made those drugs higher level of controlled substance in the state, then there would be more teeth," said Clint Hopkins, owner of Pucci's Pharmacy in Midtown Sacramentom, whose store was robbed for $30,000 worth of pills 3 years ago. The thieves were never caught, and the store has been broken into 5 times since. abc10.com
 

Coronavirus Update

Coronavirus could drive up out-of-stocks at stores by April: Wells Fargo
Shoppers could start seeing empty store shelves as soon as mid-April due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to Wells Fargo analysts who say concern about the supply chain is rising among retailers.

Store closures and guidance cuts have been the primary impact of the outbreak on the retail sector thus far, leaving the supply chain largely unaffected. Wells Fargo said that inventories are healthy at the moment, thanks to retailer efforts to get ahead of tariff issues and the Lunar New Year. Moreover, merchandise for spring and summer has shipped.

"That being said, our sources indicate that out-of stocks at retail for replenishment product could start within 60-to-90 days if disruptions continue beyond the next few weeks, with more significant inventory issues in seasonal product possibly by midsummer if disruptions stretch longer," wrote analysts led by Edward Kelly.

Among the companies at high risk, according to Wells Fargo, are Best Buy Co Inc., Target Corp., Walmart Inc., Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. and G-III Apparel Group Ltd.

"It's worth noting that big-box players like Target and Walmart could be the first to experience out-of-stock issues, as they are more heavily dependent on a shorter lead time replenishment model," Wells Fargo said.

At low risk are off-price retailers like Burlington Stores Inc., Kroger Co., and Ulta Beauty Inc. marketwatch.com

Rate of new coronavirus infections slows, but China remains largely shut down
The number of deaths from the illness, now known as covid-19, has surpassed 1,100, Chinese officials said Wednesday. But a reduction in the number of new cases reported for a second consecutive day is offering some hope, not least for China's ruling Communist Party, which is trying to manage an outpouring of public anger over its handling of the emergency and is proposing measures to boost the sagging economy.

The number of new infections in China outside the epidemic hotspot of Hubei province has fallen for the eighth day in a row, even as the total number of deaths reaches new highs.

The death toll from the coronavirus rose to 1,113, nearly all of the fatalities in China, and total confirmed cases reached 44,653. washingtonpost.com

Cruise ship turned away from five countries allowed to dock in Cambodia

Coronavirus 'great concern' for travel retail

KFC and Pizza Hut Stores Shuttered by Coronavirus Take a Bite Out of Yum China's Forecast

Video: Teen pranksters pretend to spill coronavirus on NYC subway
 

MarketScale Mornings: Retail's Direction in the Aftermath of NRF 2020

Video Interview with Tony D'Onofrio, Global Retail Influencer

On this episode of MarketScale Mornings, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern were joined by retail guru and industry leader Tony D'Onofrio. The three unpack the high points of NRF 2020, Retail's Big Show.

In particular, MarketScale's Geoffrey Short said the mood on the show floor centered around a few key trends - data and its potential applications in the retail industry, the need for a blending of ecommerce and traditional retail spaces as innovation and customer desires continue to snowball, growing cybersecurity concerns and solutions, and more.

For his part, D'Onofrio touched on progress in data collection, Amazon's presence at NRF and what it means moving forward, consumer technology's continued intertwining with retail, and other big-picture drivers of the retail industry as a new decade gets underway. marketscale.com

The Body Shop Becomes First Major Retailer to Adopt "Open Hiring"

No Interviews - No Background Checks - No Drug Tests

Almost all retailers run background checks on prospective employees - one of the many obstacles for people who were formerly incarcerated and are now trying to find a job. For other job seekers, a drug screening for marijuana might cost them a position even in states where recreational use is legal. This summer, the Body Shop will become the first large retailer to embrace a different approach, called "open hiring."

When there's an opening, nearly anyone who applies and meets the most basic requirements will be able to get a job, on a first-come, first-served basis.

The company piloted the practice, which was pioneered by the New York social enterprise Greyston Bakery, in its North Carolina distribution center at the end of 2019. "We're not asking for your background check," says Andrea Blieden, the general manager of the Body Shop for the U.S. "We're not asking for you to be drug screened. And there's only three questions to get a job. It's, 'Are you authorized to work in the U.S.? Can you stand for up to eight hours? And can you lift over 50 pounds?' If those three questions are answered, then we will give you a chance to come work in our distribution center."

The Body Shop plans to expand the practice to all of its retail stores this summer, where it employs around 800 people, and as many as 1,000 during the holidays. It's not a pilot, but a permanent shift in how it handles hiring. fastcompany.com

Report: Supermarkets failing at informing shoppers about product recalls
Grocery stores and supermarkets should do better when it comes to notifying customers about foods that have been recalled from their store shelves, a new study finds.

The U.S. Public Interest Research Group queried 26 of the largest U.S. grocers - including Target, Kroger, Harris Teeter, Safeway, Food Lion, Walmart and Whole Foods - in late August 2019 about their practices for notifying consumers about food recalls. Most stores declined to respond to the survey, the group says in its "Food Recall Failure" report, out Wednesday.

The findings: A vast majority of stores - 84% - failed to "adequately inform the public about recall notification efforts" or how to sign up for notifications from a store, or where to find in-store postings about recalls, the researchers found. usatoday.com

RILA: Leading Retailers Want Action on Payment Reforms
"As Chairman Powell addresses Members of Congress this week on the state of the economy, one of the issues the Chairman and the overall Federal Reserve Board should be pressed on is their complete failure to update the bipartisan debit reforms that were passed under Dodd-Frank over a decade ago. During this time, the Federal Reserve has chosen to prioritize policy revisions that benefit Wall Street banks over Main Street businesses and leading retailers. This can simply no longer stand.

Since 2009, the largest financial institutions have seen their costs reduce by 52% from seven cents to three to handle debit transactions but because the Federal Reserve has been reluctant to address this drastic disparity, Wall Street banks are still allowed to charge merchants 21 cents per transaction - receiving a roughly 600% profit." rila.org

Retail's Big Shift: From Point Of Sale To Point of Transaction
Four years after the EMV conversion, connected devices and contextual commerce have been gaining traction at brick and mortar retail. In this article, Jasma Ghai, vice president of global products and delivery for Discover tells PYMNTS how personalization at the point of transaction - along with payments choice - can benefit issuers and merchants, increasing consumer spend and fostering loyalty. pymnts.com
 

Senior LP & AP Jobs Market

Director, Safety - Sam's Club - Bentonville, AR
Develops and formulates safety, compliance, and accident prevention strategies, goals, and objectives by reviewing and approving safety and compliance programs and policies; benchmarking with other companies and organizations; identifying areas of safety and compliance risk or potential non-compliance; and directing techniques to be utilized in addressing specific accidents and/or loss trends. Ensures facilities are compliant with and execute safety and compliance policies, procedures, and regulations by directing the completion of audits and reviews; evaluating process improvements; and reporting results and corrective action to senior leadership. Analyzes data and financial reports to decrease injuries, losses and increase company profitability by identifying trends; applying resources; monitoring improvements; and communicating results to corporate leadership team. myworkdayjobs.com

Director, Loss Prevention Stores - Tractor Supply Co. - Brentwood, TN
This position is responsible for supervision of multiple regional loss prevention managers throughout the country to include staffing, development, performance oversight and budgeting for the assigned regions. This position will develop, maintain and manage exception-based reporting review for the regional loss prevention manager team and drive shrink reduction initiatives in all stores. Evaluates accounting and operational processes and recommends programs to reduce risk and losses. This position may also directly cover a set number of stores in all aspects of loss prevention for a geographic area to reduce and control shortage and other financial losses. careers-tractorsupply.icims.com
 

White House Official Says Huawei Has Secret Back Door to Extract Data
Huawei has the ability to secretly retrieve sensitive information in next-generation wireless networks and other systems it maintains around the world, a top White House official said Tuesday.

The comment from Robert C. O'Brien, the national security adviser, is one of the sharpest public denunciations of the Chinese company by the Trump administration, and comes as the United States is reeling from the decision by Britain to allow Huawei to build part of their fifth-generation, or 5G, network.

American intelligence officials have long said privately that Huawei has so-called back doors that could allow the company to obtain data that flows on the networks they build and maintain. But publicly, officials have spoken mostly about the potential that Huawei could provide Chinese officials with access to all kinds of data, without offering concrete proof.

Mr. O'Brien said Tuesday that the United States had evidence that Huawei could "access sensitive and personal information" in the systems it maintains around the world. nytimes.com

FTC to investigate 'hundreds' of past acquisitions made by
Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook
Companies like Apple, Amazon and Google do not always disclose every acquisition they make, especially when the companies in question are little fish in the big tech pond. But in aggregate, all that M&A could pose bigger questions about how they are using their financial power and market influence in anticompetitive ways.

That idea is the subject of the latest announcement from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which has issued Special Orders to five big tech firms - Alphabet (including Google), Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Microsoft - "requiring them to provide information about prior acquisitions not reported to the antitrust agencies under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act."

The five companies will need to come clean and report on every deal they have made - whether or not the media has spilled the beans on the acquisition or not - including the terms (that is, price and other financial details), scope, structure and purpose of each transaction made between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2019. techcrunch.com

UK regulator imposes maximum pre-GDPR fine on major retailer:
Cybersecurity lessons for retailers (and other organizations)
Last month the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK data protection regulator, imposed a monetary penalty notice of £500,000 on electronics retailer DSG Retail Limited (DSG), a company better known by its trading brands, such as Currys PC World and Dixons Travel. DSG is a subsidiary of Dixons Carphone plc.

The personal data breach occurred during a compromise of DSG's systems in the time period between 24 July 2017 to 25 April 2018. As this was prior to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) coming into force on 25 May 2018, the maximum penalty available to the ICO under the former Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA 1998) was a fine of £500,000.

The ICO's decision to impose the maximum penalty is another clear example of the fact that the ICO is determined to use its fining powers when it considers it appropriate and to impose high fines for what it considers to be serious failures. This strategy is also evidenced by the ICO's notices of intent of July 2019 to fine British Airways £183,390,000 and Marriott International £99,200,000 for personal data breaches that, according to the ICO, resulted at least partly from failures to comply with the data security requirements of the GDPR (although, obviously, we need to wait for the ICO's final Monetary Penalty Notices in these cases to confirm the amounts of the fines that the ICO will impose in the end). jdsupra.com

CCPA and GDPR: The Data Center Pitfalls of the 'Right to be Forgotten'
Compliance with the new privacy rules doesn't always fall on data center managers, but when it does, it's more difficult than it may sound.

The new set of privacy laws that went into effect in California on January 1 affects companies in and outside of the state - across the US and even around the world. A somewhat similar set of rules went into effect in Europe in 2018. Its effects are also felt well beyond European borders, by all companies above a certain size that provide services to Europeans.

For the most part, these laws are designed to protect individual consumers' privacy. Both the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) include the "right to be forgotten." It entitles every consumer to request that a company delete all the information it has collected about them, with a few exceptions, such as cases where the data needs to be retained to comply with other requirements. itprotoday.com

Report: 267 million Facebook users IDs and phone numbers exposed online

WiFi: A New Way to Spread Emotet Malware

Why the Fed is considering a cash-backed cryptocurrency