The Zellman Group The State of Civil Recovery Stuart Levine, CEO, The Zellman Group

The civil recovery business saw more change in 2018 than in the preceding 30 years combined, says Stuart Levine, CEO of The Zellman Group, an LP services and consulting company that offers retailers a suite of solutions including Civil Recovery, ORC Recovery, Analytics and more. In this LPNN interview, Stuart talks about the state of civil recovery, where he sees it going over the next few years, and how Zellman Group's dedication to customer service, client culture and ethics, together with state-of-the-art technology, keeps them at the forefront of recovery solutions.

Joe & Amber Discuss Organized Retail Crime
 

Quick Take 2 Joe LaRocca, VP & Senior Advisor, Loss Prevention, RetaiLPartners Amber Bradley, Owner & Brand Strategist, Calibration Group, LLC

According to the latest NRF ORC Study, 92% of retailers report being a victim of Organized Retail Crime, with 71% saying the problem is getting worse. Joe and Amber discuss the outlook for a federal ORC law, the progress state laws and ORCA's have made, and what a regional or district LP manager can do to help the problem on a local level.

In Case You Missed It

February's Moving Ups

37 New Senior LP's - 20 Appointments - 17 Promotions

ADT named David Smail Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer
Ascena Retail Group promoted Albert Metuge to Director, Fraud Management & Analytics
Auror named Bobby Haskins Director of Market Development - North America & Retail Asset Protection
BJ's Wholesale Club promoted William Peters to Senior Director, Safety and Asset Protection Operations
BJ's Wholesale Club promoted Isaac Whitaker to Vice President Asset Protection & Field Audit
Bloomingdale's named Gary Novello, CFI Director of AP Investigations
Centric Brands, Inc. named Ian Dill Vice President, Store Operations and Asset Protection
Conn's HomePlus named Rick Mitchell Director of Loss Prevention, Inventory Control and Fraud
Duluth Trading Company promoted David Homolka to VP of Human Resources, Store Operations & Asset Protection
FaceFirst Names Dara Riordan Executive Vice President of Sales and Chief Revenue Officer
iHerb Inc. named Katie Walker, CFI Director of Safety and Security
InstaKey promoted Cita Doyle to Vice President of Sales and Marketing - National Accounts
J.Crew promoted Leigh Kohlhaas to Loss Prevention Operations Director
J.C. Penney named Mark Stinde Senior Vice President, Asset Protection
Levi Strauss named Garrett Petraia VP of Global Security
Lord & Taylor promoted Greg Purwin to Corporate Manager of Investigations
Loss Prevention Research Council promoted Mike Giblin to Director of Research
Loss Prevention Research Council promoted Jordan Burchell to Innovation Specialist
Lowe's named Dilsia Coronoa Senior Asset Protection, Operations & Safety Manager
Lowe's named Charles Pankey Sr. Asset Protection, Ops & Safety Manager
Lowe's promoted Todd Isenhour to Division Director Assets Protection, Operations & Safety - North Division
Lowe's named Leo Cabral, CFI Director SC Safety & Asset Protection
Lowe's promoted Kate Early to Director of Asset Protection Process and Strategy
Lowe's promoted Laura Westfall to Divisional Asset Protection, Operations & Safety Director
Lowe's promoted Jennifer Byford to Senior Asset Protection, Operations and Safety Manager
Luby's Fuddruckers Restaurants promoted Liz Cody to Executive Director of Loss Prevention
OpenEye named Scott Spencer National Accounts Manager
Peet's Coffee named Andrew Perry Senior Director, Retail Operations
Security Resources, Inc. named Taylor Valdez Operations Manager
Staples named Mark Mellor, CFCI Senior LP Manager
Target promoted Jacob Oney to Operations Director - OH, IN, KY, WV, PA
TJX Companies named Omar Reyes, CFI Sr. Investigations Report Analyst
Topgolf named Ken Gladney, CFI Sr. Security Manager
Walmart promoted Travis Shipley to Market Health & Wellness Director
WG Security Products named Chad McIntosh VP of Innovative Product Solutions
WKS Restaurant Group named Christopher Magana Senior Manager of Risk Management & Asset Protection
99 Cents Only Stores promoted Larry Carroll to VP of Asset Protection, Inventory Analytics & Compliance

Hector Erazo, LPC, CFI named Senior Manager, Retail Security for Oportun
Previously, Hector held field leadership roles as an Asset Protection Multi-District Leader for Rite Aid, Market Asset Protection Manager for Walmart, District Asset Protection Supervisor for Northgate Market, and Senior Asset Protection Investigator for Target Corporation. Hector earned his Bachelor's of Science degree in Business Management from the University of Phoenix and is currently completing his Master's in Business Administration (MBA) degree at the University of the People.

Based in the Silicon Valley, Oportun is a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), with over 300 retail locations, doing business in 12 states. Oportun was recently named one of Time's "50 Genius Companies", "One of the Fastest Growing Companies in North America" on Deloitte's 2018 Technology Fast 500, and 2018 American Banker's "Best Places to Work in Financial Technology". Congratulations Hector!

Submit Your New Corporate Hires/Promotions or New Position

ALL-TAG Develops Customizable 31x32 mm SuperLabel Combines Security with Omni-Channel Marketing

BOCA RATON, Fla. - ALL-TAG, an American manufacturer of RF Labels, and a leading supplier of AM Anti-theft Security Tags, Security Labels, and other loss prevention products, announces the development of a customizable 31x32 mm SuperLabel®, a multi-purpose security label that will increase source tagging compliance by allowing Consumer Goods Manufactures (CGM) to promote their brand and enhance merchandising.

ALL-TAG's customizable security label offers many printing options, such as brand logos, slogans, and QR Codes. CGM's and other retail merchandise vendors that are required to source tag their merchandise for various retailers can now use the security label as an additional tool that will keep shoppers informed and ultimately increase sales of their products.

Our 31x32 mm SuperLabel is also equipped with patented technology that boosts the detection performance of the label. Therefore, users of this smaller label will not be sacrificing performance. The smaller footprint allows it to fit on more retail product packaging, does not conceal important printed content on the outside of the packaging.

"We're thrilled to have added new machines in our South Florida factory that enable us to produce this product in the US," commented ALL-TAG's Vice President of Sales, Andy Gilbert.

"Source taggers can now satisfy their source tagging requirements, but also make the security label work for them as well." Gilbert continued, "This is a win for everyone because it will increase source tagging compliance, decrease shrink, and increase sales all at the same time."

To find out more about the product listed in this release, please visit all-tag.com.


About ALL-TAG
ALL-TAG is an American manufacturer of 8.2 MHz Radio-Frequency (RF) Labels, and supplier of Accousto Magnetic (AM) labels that are used to source tag retail merchandise. ALL-TAG also supplies RF and AM Hard Tags, Ink Tags, and other Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) solutions that are fully compatible with Checkpoint® and Sensormatic® brand products. ALL-TAG has been manufacturing its RF Labels for source-taggers and retailers throughout the world since 1992. Our manufacturing facility is located in Boca Raton, Florida. The company also has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Mexico City, and Hong Kong, to service our customers throughout the world.

Closer to a Data Breach Bill Then Ever Before
Breach notification and digital privacy: Two issues, one piece of legislation?
In the House, the Energy and Commerce Committee is expected to move first in the larger debate on data privacy, and will try to fold in the perpetually intractable issue of breach notification. The House Financial Services Committee, which has produced competing breach-notice bills in recent years, appears ready to hang back and work on other priorities while Energy and Commerce gets the process rolling.

In the upper chamber, a bipartisan group of senators is advancing on privacy -- and at least one key GOP committee chairman wants to address that issue separately from breach notification.

Amid the political and policy complexity, sources from various industries say the chances of advancing a national data security and breach-notification standard are better than they have been at any time in the last decade. They are all eager to see legislative text -- on privacy and breach-notice -- which is still in the works on the Hill.

The looming Jan. 1, 2020 implementation date for California's landmark digital privacy law "creates an imperative" for congressional action on that issue, the source said, adding lawmakers probably have the first half of 2020 to actually finish a bill before the 116th Congress' legislative work comes to a halt because of the elections. Other sources cautioned that the window of opportunity may be shorter than that.

"The California privacy law and [the European Union's] General Data Protection Regulation are changing the narrative -- the new legislative and policy reality is that California could be the floor [on privacy]," the source said. "But I still don't see a multi-industry scoping framework on privacy that's as strong as California's passing before 2020." insidecybersecurity.com

Cloud Adoption on the Rise, IT Pros Unsure of Risk
Even though misconfigurations in public clouds create risks to enterprise security, a new study found that more than half of IT professionals do not really understand the risks inherent in public cloud misconfigurations as well as they understand risks within their traditional IT environments.

The 2019 State of Enterprise Cloud and Container Adoption and Security report published by DivvyCloud found that despite the reality that cloud adoption is on the rise, IT professionals are unaware of the security risks associated with their organizations' adoption of cloud and container services. In fact, less than half of participants could accurately identify that the risk of misconfiguration in public cloud is higher than the risk in traditional IT environments, the study found.

Overall, the study results indicated a lack of understanding of the security challenges associated with protecting data in the public cloud. More than one-third of respondents admitted they are uncertain which governance standards are most relevant to their organization's cloud and container environments. infosecurity-magazine.com

Where Are the Retail Industry's Software Security Strengths and Weaknesses?
SecurityScorecard's 2018 Retail Cyber Security Report concluded that "although hackers have become increasingly clever with stealing credit card data, the retail industry is no better prepared to deal with the threat." Of 18 industries analyzed, retail was "the second lowest performer in terms of application security, indicating a decrease from 2017's Retail Report when it was the fourth lowest performer," the report said.

The two practices where the retail industry came in below average were compliance and policy as well as security testing. The first is extremely important because it involves securing personally identifiable information (PII) of customers and demanding security from third-party vendors or partners

Other practices where retail tracked close to the average included training, code review, security testing, strategy and metrics, security features and design, attack models, standards and requirements, and penetration testing. mytotalretail.com

Forty Percent of Malicious URLs Found on Good Domains
While tried-and-true attack methods are still going strong, new threats emerge daily, and new vectors are being tested by cybercriminals, according to the 2019 Webroot Threat Report.

40 percent of malicious URLs were found on good domains. Legitimate websites are frequently compromised to host malicious content. To protect users, cybersecurity solutions need URL-level visibility or, when unavailable, domain-level metrics, that accurately represent the dangers.

Phishing attacks increased 36 percent, with the number of phishing sites growing 220 percent over the course of 2018. Phishing sites now use SSL certificates and HTTPS to trick internet users into believing they are secure, legitimate pages

Nearly a third of malware tries to install itself in %appdata% folders.

Devices that use Windows 10 are at least twice as secure as those running Windows 7. securitymagazine.com

Microsoft's new cloud security tools aim to reduce alert fatigue
In an announcement ahead of the RSA Conference, Microsoft released details of two cloud-based security tools for large organizations. The new tools use AI and machine learning to help security professionals reduce "alert fatigue" and respond to actual threats more quickly.

Azure Sentinel is a new service offering within Azure that Microsoft bills as a "cloud-native Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tool." It's designed to pull in vast amounts of data from other cloud-based services, including Office 365 and third-party solutions, and then use AI to reduce the noise and identify actual threats.

The second offering, Microsoft Threat Experts, is a new service within Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) designed to "address the cybersecurity skills gap" by providing expert help for security operations teams who are existing ATP customers. zdnet.com

Amazon is Risking Customer Trust
In Pursuit of Being "The Everything Store"
As Amazon's megastore grows and becomes more popular, so does the risk that it blows itself up.

What happens as Amazon gives more and more third parties access to its global store? The number of opportunities for bad actors to plot nefarious things multiplies. Trust from customers and merchants alike is at risk - and Amazon knows it. The biggest threat to Amazon's future success isn't some imaginary antitrust case; it's Amazon itself.

Amazon says it invests more and more each year in trying to stay ahead of the bad guys, by combining the best of what "machines" (translation: computers) can do with monitoring and evaluation for which "humans" (translation: people) are still best suited.

The company says that, for every listing that slips through and is flagged by a brand after the fact, it is now catching 100 suspected counterfeit product listings before a brand points them out. That is thanks in part to a new automated system backed by machine learning that the company formally announced Thursday morning, February 28, 2019.

Amazon introduced two additional anti-counterfeit initiatives on Thursday, but both require a brand to do more on its end: one is a tool that lets brands take down suspected counterfeit Amazon listings themselves, while another would likely require brands to alter their packaging design to add an Amazon-specific serial code.

Separately, for the last three-plus years, Amazon has made a practice of publicizing lawsuits against fake-review farms, signaling to merchants, the press, the government, and shoppers that they take customer trust seriously. Fake reviews are still a big problem, and the Federal Trade Commission has started to take action. recode.net

Shady Sellers Are Damaging Brands Online - but There's a Way to Fight Back
Before the proliferation of online marketplaces, brands could be confident in knowing exactly who was selling their products, on what platforms and at what prices. Now, with unauthorized sellers trying to hawk items at reduced - and unapproved - rates, brands are risking damage to their corporate reputations. What's more, retailers are seeing reduced margins as they're forced to stay competitive.

Fortunately, there's a solution: a rigorous and updated distribution agreement, coupled with a thoughtful MAP (minimum advertised price) policy.

An open policy leaves a brand vulnerable to integrity damage, as consumers question why the brand is pushing for higher prices than the ones displayed on Amazon and other online marketplaces. Brands also might see their valued retail partners choosing not to sell their products if they can't make enough profit at the lower pricing. Introducing a comprehensive agreement protects the brand, retailers and customer by ensuring a universal price.

But overhauling distribution strategy is a large task that requires looking at dozens of data points. That's where companies like Trackstreet and ORIS Intelligence come in, using their software platforms to collate the data into an actionable format. By assessing which products are being undermined by reduced price points - and which have just decreased in market value over time - a company can find out where to target their price protection efforts. footwearnews.com

US ecommerce sales grow 15.0% in 2018

Marshalls Set To Launch eCommerce Business In 2019

JD.com Beats Q4 Sales Forecast as Online Accounts Top 305 Million

Macy's Still Makes Top 10 In Mobile Payments / ECommerce Shopping...Barely

Lowe's beats Home Depot in the percentage of online orders picked up in stores

Rakuten Super Logistics To Open 6 New Ecommerce Fulfillment Centers

Online retailers reimagined as bricks & mortar stores

4 Suspects Arrested in $300,000 Zales smash & grab at Willowbrook Mall
The four suspects accused of a smash-and-grab heist inside a Willowbrook Mall jewelry store have been identified. Police say that Trevione Terry, 21; Lance Ethridge, 28; Damarcus Carter, 22; and Cary Nimmons, 26, were all arrested after allegedly stealing more than $300,000 worth of jewelry and other items from a Zales jewelry store inside the northwest Houston mall Monday. Carter is also identified as a suspect in another smash-and-grab heist at a Zales jewelry store in northwest Harris County. chron.com

Rockford, IL: Meijer Employees charged with stealing roughly $100K
worth of merchandise
Three women are charged with stealing roughly $100,000 worth of merchandise from the Rockford Meijer. Rockford Police were called to Meijer for employees stealing from the store. Loss prevention workers discovered that three employees worked together to steal merchandise from the business. Poluice say they took the merchandise between November 2018 and January 2019. Lindsey Smallwood, Helena Washington and Vanessa Horvath are all charged. Smallwood and Washington face one count of retail theft. Horvath faces one count of theft and one count of retail theft. wrex.com

Union County, NJ: Man Admits Role in Credit Card Fraud Gang & Aggravated Identity Theft
A Union County, New Jersey, man today admitted his role in a conspiracy to hijack the credit card accounts of multiple victims in order to fraudulently purchase hundreds of thousands of dollars in high-end products,  Members of the conspiracy then opened new accounts or ordered replacement cards to be shipped to them without the account owners' knowledge or authorization. Jato and others used the compromised credit card accounts to purchase high-value items, including smartphones, tablets, and other electronic devices. Jato admitted receiving 25 percent to 30 percent of the illegal proceeds from more than 10 victims. Co-defendants Alexus Omowole and Henry Abdul previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft and are awaiting sentencing. justice.gov


New Orleans, LA: 2 Hibbett Sports employees traded shoes for drugs: totaling nearly $24,000
Two employees of a Franklinton sporting goods store were arrested Wednesday (Feb. 27) in connection with the theft of $23,146 in merchandise, including 212 pairs of shoes, which were traded for drugs or sold, authorities said. Arrested were Jenna Cosse, 25, the manager at Hibbett Sports, and Elizabeth Reedy, 25, who had been a store employee for about four months, the Franklinton Police Department said. nola.com


Simi Valley, CA: Police make arrest in retail theft spree
Woman linked to multiple retail thefts at Macy's, Old Navy and other clothing stores
A two-month investigation by Simi Valley police detectives resulted in the arrest of a Los Angeles woman accused of a retail crime spree, authorities said Thursday. Clothing stores from Ventura to Orange counties have been targeted, including a Macy's department store in Simi Valley that was hit twice, according to Simi Valley Police Department Sgt. Patrick Zayicek. In at least one other jurisdiction, Old Navy stores were targeted.

On Thursday, detectives served a search warrant at the Los Angeles residence of 23-year-old Danielle Graham. They allegedly found evidence linking her to numerous thefts. A dollar amount of purported stolen merchandise was not available Monday night. Graham was arrested on suspicion of six felony offenses, including grand theft, conspiracy, and organized retail theft. The department's investigation remains active, Zayicek said, with detectives following up on three to five more suspects. Conspiracy and organized retail theft offenses both involve acting in concert with at least one other person, he said. vcstar.com
 

Las Cruces, NM: LCPD seeking two women in $6,000 shoplifting crime spree Las Cruces Police said they learned the two women shoplifted merchandise from several stores in Las Cruces on Sunday, Feb. 10. The merchandise stolen was valued at approximately $6,000. The same two women are suspected of shoplifting an unknown amount of merchandise from a store in Socorro, New Mexico, sometime after Feb. 10. lcsun-news.com

North Ridgeville, OH: "Turn yourself in before your mothers see this";
two accused of $4,000 theft
These two have opened up at least three different credit accounts in the name of a resident and have managed to rack up over $4,000 in stolen merchandise from stores like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy. fox8.com

Vero Beach, FL: Suspect sought in $2,000 theft of merchandise from Target
Loss prevention officers for the Target told Indian River County deputies an unknown suspect entered the store about 8:30 p.m. Sunday and left a short time later with over $2,000 in merchandise. Among the stolen items: a Nest Hello doorbell camera worth $230; a Ring VD2 doorbell camera worth $199; two Dyson vacuum cleaners, worth $500 each; and an iRobot-branded robot worth $500. tcpalm.com

Boise, ID: Man arrested after walking out with over $1,000 of merchandise
during multiple thefts
Boise Police, working together with loss prevention officers at the business, identified the suspect as 32-year-old Andrew Hollo of Boise. Hollo is charged with four counts of felony burglary and felony grand theft. Hollo was arrested on Feb. 27th without incident and booked into the Ada County Jail. The Organized Retail Crime Association of Idaho contributed to the arrest of Hollo. the association helps law enforcement and retailers effectively communicate criminal activity in real-time, putting a stop to crimes as soon as possible. idahonews.com

Glenview, IL: Police seek serial thief focused on allergy medicine and teeth strips
A staffer at Mariano's reviewed surveillance video on Feb. 18 and discovered that a man known for shoplifting at other stores had stolen nearly $878 worth of allergy medicines and teeth whitening strips around 8:30 p.m. on Feb. 17 after hiding them in his clothes. patch.com

Suffolk County, NY: Police seek two suspects in $1,000 theft of electrical wiring from Lowe's in Riverhead

Cudahy, WI: Police catch serial shoplifter after he tried to steal 17 bottles of shampoo from a local CVS; multiple warrants
 

Submit Your New Hires/Promotions or New Position

Featured Job Spotlights

	Area Loss Prevention Manager - Seattle, Portland or Salt Lake City Seattle WA, Portland OR, Salt Lake City UT Our Area Loss Prevention Managers ensure safe and secure stores through the objective identification of loss and risk opportunities. Our Area Loss Prevention Managers plan and prioritize to provide an optimal customer experience to their portfolio of stores...
	District Loss Prevention Manager Eastern PA/NJ The District Loss Prevention Manager ensures shrinkage control and improves safety in the stores through proper investigation and training. This position is responsible to provide feedback, guidance and protection for our Team Leaders and Associates. This role has oversight and responsibility for approximately 15-20 store locations...
	Field Manager, Asset Protection (Northeast & Midwest) New York, NY| Poughkeepsie, NY | Parsippany, NJ Recruiting a Field Manager, Asset Protection to support our Northeast & Midwest HD Supply Construction & Industrial locations. This role will be based in the Greater New York area...
NEW TODAY	Asset Protection Officer Chicago, IL We're looking for dynamic individuals as an Asset Protection Associate, who is committed to maintaining a safe environment for American Girl customers and employees, as well as, safeguarding company assets. The individual we seek should be able to multi-task, have outstanding communication skills, and exhibit a high level of compassion and understanding...
	Loss Prevention Analyst Richmond, VA Protects company assets and increases profitability through the analysis, response and management of various data across a broad spectrum of internal financial and technology resources such as Exception Reporting, Sales Audit, FP&A, IT and Loss Prevention. The Loss Prevention Analyst works cross-functionally in a dynamic, fast paced and demanding environment providing critical guidance to the organization's asset protection and profit improvement initiatives...
	Regional Safety and LP Specialist Miami, FL The Safety and Loss Prevention Specialist is a subject matter expert responsible for partnering with both our corporate stores and franchise store operations to improve the safety and training processes. This includes reducing motor vehicle accidents, reducing work-related injuries, and ensuring OSHA / DOT compliance through the implementation of corporate or franchisee plans in accordance with local, state, and federal rules and regulations...

Featured Jobs

To apply to any of today's Featured Jobs, Click Here

Today's Daily Job Postings from all around the net - Appearing today only

To apply to today's Internet Jobs, Click Here

Sponsor Today's Internet Jobs 

We want to post your tips or advice... Click here

Not getting the Daily? Is it ending up in your spam folder?
Please make sure to add d-ddaily@downing-downing.com to your contact list, address book, trusted sender list, and/or company whitelist to ensure you receive our newsletter. 
Want to know how? Read Here