Retailer secures ORC suspect arrest, return of missing minor

AP pros use proactive face matching to stop notorious booster

Here's a FaceFirst client ORC win that dovetails with recent news coverage about missing and exploited children and teens.

When a known ORC booster walked into a retailer's store, FaceFirst instantly notified the designated ORC investigator. The investigator and the ORC AP team acted immediately. Within 90 minutes, their actions led to the suspect's arrest, the recovery of goods worth thousands of dollars, and the eventual safe return of a missing minor.

The case started when investigators identified a man as a prolific ORC booster in May 2022. The man was involved in numerous larcenies at various client locations and other retailers, but he had not been apprehended during any of those incidents. Investigators enrolled him as a known offender in the retailer's custom database.

When the man returned to one of the retailer's stores, the FaceFirst system matched his enrolled face and sent a notification email to the designated investigator. The investigator immediately notified the ORC AP team of the known offender's presence. The man left that store, but within half an hour he entered another of the retailer's locations. There, the AP team observed the man and an unknown young woman concealing large amounts of health and beauty products.

The AP team confirmed the FaceFirst match-combining powerful artificial intelligence with human oversight-and called the police. When the two individuals left the store with concealed products valued at $1,428.91, officers detained them. They found thousands of dollars worth of stolen goods from other retailers.

Subsequent investigation revealed the man also had an outstanding warrant for first-degree burglary. Details about various judicial proceedings against the man are pending. Investigators identified the young woman as a minor who was 12 years old when reported missing in April 2021. There had been no leads on her whereabouts until this incident. Local authorities removed the minor, made appropriate notifications, and arranged for her return to her guardians.

FaceFirst's face matching technology alerts retailers instantly when known threats enter their stores, providing both life safety and loss prevention advantages. Calculate the risks of being caught unaware when a known offender enters your store. If you knew there was a proven solution to keep your valued customers and associates safer from violent offenders and prevent loss, would you implement it? The real risk is answering no. FaceFirst's solution is fast, accurate, and scalable-take action today at facefirst.com.
 

Guarding Against Retail Cyber Threats
Tech Intelligence: Locking the digital door

As retail operations move online, theft also takes an omnichannel approach

More shopping activity also attracts an unsavory group, cyber hackers, who try to steal valuable customer data. So, I'd like to focus on some best practices to guard against retail cybersecurity threats.

First, consider that the effects of a successful cyber breach of a retailer go far beyond the targeted merchant - instead, the bad actors are further victimizing numerous customers that have entrusted the retailer with their credit card and other sensitive data.

The rise of omnichannel retailing widens the attack surface and means more risk, since threat actors can now hunt for vulnerabilities in websites, "smart" devices and point-of-sale systems. They also exploit supply chain weaknesses to gain access to high-value targets, and use social engineering techniques, like phishing, to deceive poorly trained employees into revealing sensitive information or installing ransomware and other malware.

Start at the end

To prevent ransomware attacks and minimize the damage they may cause, retailers need to strengthen "endpoint protection" by securing digital networks that are integrated with remote devices such as desktops, laptops, smartphones and tablets as well as with company email. Retailers can also use geo-blocking to help prevent foreign hackers from accessing business systems.

Other defensive measures include multifactor authentication - multi-step account-login processes that require users to enter more information than just a password - along with strong password policies. Additionally, timely "patch" management ensures software and other updates are downloaded and applied as they are issued.

Forward-looking retailers will also provide security awareness training for their employees to educate them about "phishing" and other social engineering techniques that threat actors frequently use to trick individuals into revealing passwords and other sensitive information, or to transfer funds improperly to unauthorized third parties. Such training may also be supplemented with automated defenses like DMARC for email validation, which helps businesses to authenticate emails.  njbiz.com


Cyberattack Halts Battery Production Plants
Battery maker Varta halts production after cyberattack

Battery manufacturer Varta was forced to shut down its IT systems and stop production as a result of a cyberattack.

The cyberattack occurred on Monday night and affected five of the company's production plants and the administration. According to the German news outlet Finanzen, of the company's five production sites, three are located in Germany, one in Romania and one in Indonesia.

"The IT systems and thus also production were proactively shut down temporarily for security reasons and disconnected from the internet. The IT systems and the extent of the impact are currently being reviewed," the company shared in a public announcement on Tuesday.

The company said that it implemented the "necessary precautionary measures" and established a task force supported by cyber security experts and data forensics specialists to restore operations. "The extent of the actual damage cannot be determined at this time," the company noted. helpnetsecurity.com


$10M Reward for Info on Hive Ransomware Gang
State Department Offers Reward for Information on Ransomware Gang

Officials dismantled Hive's computer network, but leaders are unknown and at large.

The Department of State is offering up to $10 million for information about the leaders of the Hive, a global ransomware gang responsible for extorting more than $100 million in 2021.

Last month, the Justice Department announced that they infiltrated Hive's computer networks and seized control of them, preventing $130 million in further ransom payments. But both the identity and locations of the individuals responsible for leading Hive are still unknown. If they remain at large, the resurgence of the gang and a renewed wave of ransomware attacks is a possibility.

"Cybercrime is a constantly evolving threat. But as I have said before, the Justice Department will spare no resource to identify and bring to justice, anyone, anywhere, who targets the United States with a ransomware attack," Attorney General Merrick Garland stated. presidentialprayerteam.org


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Lynnwood, WA: More than $12,000 worth of stolen cosmetics discovered by Lynnwood Police
Two people believed to be part of an organized retail theft ring in Lynnwood were caught with thousands of dollars worth of stolen cosmetics. Police responded to a theft in progress in Alderwood Mall earlier this month. When they arrived, a store employee said identified two people stealing makeup, and they were recognized for stealing from the store the day before. The two were taken into custody, and their car was confiscated. Inside the car, police found more than $12,000 in stolen cosmetics. Pictures tweeted by police of the stolen cosmetics showed a pile of eyeliner, mascara, and face powder, some with the distinctive high-end Fenty logo. The cosmetics were being sold for "pennies on the dollar and being shipped across state lines," police said in their release. One of the suspects was booked for organized retail theft. The other suspect is a juvenile who was released to their parents/guardian.  kiro7.com


Nashville, TN: Police investigating string of violent Dollar General robberies
A string of robberies at Nashville Dollar General stores was caught on camera. Metro Nashville Police said they're working to find the three women who stole hundreds of items and attacked a store manager in the process. Employee Aja Roth said she is scared for her safety with people seriously hurt after police said two thefts happened within an hour of each other on Tuesday. The thieves loaded more than 300 bottles of soap, detergent and other items into carts at her store along Murfreesboro Pike and then ran out the front door. Roth said she's seen these women steal from them about once a month. The other robbery happened on Hobson Pike in Antioch where the manager tried to stop the thieves and was thrown to the ground. Police are working to identify the women and confirm that these robberies are connected.  wsmv.com


Salt Lake City, UT: Three arrested on claims of stealing $10k in merchandise from Brickyard Plaza store
Police arrested three people on Wednesday accused of stealing at least $10,000 in merchandise from a store located at Salt Lake City's Brickyard Plaza. Officers with the Salt Lake City Police Department said that this investigation began at 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 14 when dispatch received information on a retail theft happening at 1198 East Brickyard Road. The store listed at that address is Ross Dress for Less. Officers collaborated with the shop's loss prevention team to gather a description of the car the group arrived in. Police located the suspect vehicle in the store's parking lot and took all three occupants into custody: 36-year-old Mijali Jardines Castanon, 46-year-old Maria Jardinas, and 38-year-old Andrea Casas. During the preliminary investigation, officer learned that the suspects were connected to at least 10 other thefts of the same clothing store but at different locations throughout the area. During a court-authorized search warrant of the suspect vehicle, police said they located 114 pairs of shoes, 153 handbags, 82 wallets, 400 pieces of clothing, and 18 other stolen items including wallets and fashion accessories. Officials estimated the cost of the stolen merchandise to be at least $10,000.  kjzz.com


Aiea, HI: Aiea business owner out over $10K after shoe, merch heist
A business owner in Aiea is still picking up the pieces after thieves apparently made off with thousands of dollars worth of merchandise on Tuesday, Feb. 13. The owner of Curated HNL said his biggest loss is shoes. The security cameras at Curated HNL caught two men as they smashed into the consignment store in Aiea just after 3:45 a.m. on Tuesday. "And they grabbed those big picks, so it was for the pucks used for trenching, digging the holes, digging a trench," Curated HNL owner Brandon Yagin said, "they used that, he knocked it down, the other guy, the smaller guy pushed the glass over and then they proceeded to go into the store, one guy went straight to the shoe and the other guy went straight to the clothing, so they knew what they was getting!" The stolen shoes might not end up being as valuable as the thieves thought. "They only grabbed the display pairs, left side. So I have a bunch of shoes, the right side that I will probably let other consignors know and they might have to pick it up," Yagin said. Yagin said the smashed glass door will cost over $1,000 and the clothes that were stolen are valued around $1,500, but he lost about $8,500 worth of footwear. Now he has about 40 shoes that will only fit the right foot.  khon2.com


Daphne, AL: Mobile woman arrested, 1 on the loose in theft at Daphne Ulta Beauty
A Mobile woman was arrested Wednesday night and booked into the Baldwin County Jail in connection to a theft at the Ulta store in Daphne. K'Dorien Nannette Bumpers, 19, of Mobile, was arrested and is charged with organized retail theft and two counts of first-degree retail theft, and she has two holds: one in Troy, Alabama, and another in Santa Rosa County, Florida. According to Daphne Police, Bumpers and another woman, who has not been identified, walked into Ulta in Daphne, filled their baskets with perfume and cologne, and ran out the door. Ulta employees were able to get a description of the vehicle Bumpers and the other woman left in. wkrg.com