Retailers Deploy Facial Recognition to Battle Theft Surge

NYC Stores Deploy Facial Recognition to Catch Thieves
Stores are using facial recognition to help stop repeat shoplifters

NYC is seeing record high numbers of shoplifting.

Data from the NYPD shows there were more than 63,000 retail thefts reported last year up 97% from 2020. The crime is affecting the bottom line of many business owners who are now taking on the task of fighting crime on their own.

The Fairway market on the corner of Broadway and West 74th street on the Upper Westside is resorting to technology to help them catch the thieves, it is now using facial recognition.

It says retail theft and shoplifting has a high rate of repeat offense and drives up grocery costs for all customers, telling Fox 5, "This technology is helping our stores reduce retail crime, an industry-wide challenge that has increased dramatically over the last few years.

Only trained asset protection associates use the system, which helps us focus attention on repeat shoplifters.

"We follow all applicable laws, including posting signage to make shoppers aware of the use of biometric software. Retail theft and shoplifting has a high rate of repeat offense and drives up grocery costs for all customers.

We have found that this technology -- used thoughtfully and in combination with other measures we take to reduce theft - is helping prevent more crime in store."  fox5ny.com
 

The ORC Debate Rages on Nationwide
America's biggest companies say retail crime is an epidemic, but just how big of a problem is it?
America's biggest retailers say organized retail crime has grown into a multibillion-dollar problem, but the effectiveness of their strategies to solve it and the validity of the data overall have come into question.

Over the last several years, companies such as Home Depot, Lowe's, Walmart, Best Buy, Walgreens and CVS have been sounding the alarm about organized bands of thieves who ransack their stores and resell the goods on online marketplaces.

They've poured money into theft prevention strategies, such as plastic cases, metal detectors, motion-sensing monitors and AI-powered cameras, and have warned if the problem doesn't improve, consumers could end up paying the price.

However, the problem isn't as clear-cut as retailers and trade groups have made it seem.

Studies from the National Retail Federation show retail shrink cost retailers $94.5 billion in 2021, up from $90.8 billion in 2020, but the data is largely qualitative and cannot be fact-checked because it's gathered from an anonymized set of retailers.

At least one major retailer recently conceded that it may have overblown the problem.

"Maybe we cried too much last year," Walgreens Chief Financial Officer James Kehoe said on an investor call in January when asked about shrink. "We're stabilized," he added, saying the company is "quite happy with where we are."

Still, law enforcement agencies and retailers insist organized retail crime remains an issue and said they stand behind their data.

"I can tell you that in our world, we know that crime is increasing. We see it every day in our stores," Scott Glenn, Home Depot's vice president of asset protection, told CNBC. "Our internal information shows us that that's on a year-over-year basis, growing at double-digit rates."

Watch the video (also published in Friday's edition of the D&D Daily) to learn more.   cnbc.com


Shoplifting Continues to Rise in LA
LA Retailers Putting Products Behind Glass as Shoplifting Rises 2%

Retailers in Los Angeles are increasingly keeping products locked up in response to shoplifting.

Stores in the city have seen a 2% increase in theft and robberies so far this year compared to the monthly average of the pre-pandemic years of 2016-2019, local news source KABC reported. Over-the-counter medications, cosmetics, laundry detergent and underwear are among the items retailers are commonly keeping in glass display cases, according to the report.

Customers must press a button to summon an employee, wait for staff to unlock the case and then, in some cases, walk with the employee to the register to pay, the report said.

The rise in shoplifting has been driven by organized crime, as the perpetrators are stealing items in large quantitiesand then selling them, according to the report.

This news comes about a week after New York City Mayor Eric Adams told two local news sources in his city that retailers should deter shoplifting by requiring customers to remove face masks as they enter the store.

Los Angeles and New York were among the five cities most impacted by organized retail theft in 2021, along with San Francisco/Oakland, Houston and Miami, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported in September 2022.

In response to these trends, retailers are balancing the need to deploy theft deterrents with the need to maintain an inviting shopping environment for consumers. pymnts.com


Bay Area Thefts Up 12% - Robberies Up 5%
California's Crime Crisis Makes More Headlines

CNN Reporter Robbed Multiple Times in SF Shines Unflattering Spotlight on California's Crime Crisis
Umpteen stories about the crime crisis in San Francisco have been written just in the last month alone, with CBS News, NBC News, and the SF Chronicle among the numerous outlets interviewing frustrated residents and business owners alike who say they are at their wits' end and that the city is failing them.

ABC 7 News has a crime tracker for Bay Area cities including San Francisco, and the stats don't lie.

"Robberies over the last 12 months are up 5% compared to the annual average over the last three years, according to San Francisco Police Department data through March 12," the site noted on the "robberies" tab as of this writing.

"Thefts over the last 12 months are up 12% compared to the annual average over the last three years, according to San Francisco Police Department data through March 12," they also noted on the "thefts" tab.

While they indicated that burglaries were down 15%, their map shows three areas in San Francisco ("Southern," "Central," and "Northern") where the crime rate is "higher than the citywide rate."

CNN reporter Kyung Lah and producer Jason Kravarik traveled to San Francisco last week to interview residents about the crime problem there and voter discontent over the matter. But while there, the CNN crew were robbed multiple times according to Lah, who detailed their experience in a Twitter thread.

Kravarik described the criminals in San Francisco as being "on another level" than what you normally see in the average city. legalinsurrection.com


Virginia's ORC Legislation Push in the News
Update: Bill before Youngkin would punish organized retail theft
Before adjourning the legislative session last month, lawmakers in the Virginia General Assembly sent a bill to Gov. Glenn Youngkin that would crack down on groups who commit organized retail theft.

Two identical bills in the House and Senate would make it a Class 3 felony, punishable by 5 to 20 years in prison, for any individual who "conspires" or acts with another person to shoplift from one or more retail establishments "with the intent to sell such retail property for monetary or other gain." The felony charges would be triggered when $5,000 or more worth of goods is stolen within a 90-day period, according to the bills' text.

The governor has a March 27 deadline to act on both measures, according to the state's bill tracking system. Macaulay Porter, the governor's spokeswoman, said the governor is reviewing the legislation but did not directly answer whether Youngkin plans to sign the bills. Representatives from the governor's administration spoke in support of the House version of the bill as it advanced in committee.

Supporters of the legislation argued the bill is necessary to deter shoplifting groups from stealing from retail shops. In a 2021 report, the National Retail Foundation estimated organized retail crime costs retailers an average of $700,000 per $1 billion in sales.  thecentersquare.com

   Click here to read the Daily's special report on the nationwide ORC legislation push


Task force cracking down on 'organized retail crime' rings in Utah

Son of victim in Boulder grocery store mass shooting sues gun-maker Ruger

DAs prepare public safety package for lawmakers with focus on 'violent crime'

Massive Security Preparation Underway in NYC
Just what NYC needs in the midst of a raging crime surge

Unrest Coming to NYC & Other Big Cities This Week?
As we've seen in previous bursts of unrest, this has a direct impact on storefronts

Federal, State & Local Authorities Are on Alert
NYC bracing for unrest after Trump calls for protests over possible arrest

Local, state and federal law enforcement and security agencies are preparing for the possibility that former President Donald Trump will be indicted as early as next week, according to five senior officials familiar with the preparations.

The NYPD and US Secret Service are huddling to prep for Donald Trump's possible indictment in Manhattan after the former president said he expected to be arrested this week and told supporters to protest, sources told The Post.

The FBI, state court officers and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office have also been kept in the loop on security discussions, with the Big Apple bracing for the worst after Trump, 76, urged his followers to "take our nation back" in light of his looming indictment, police sources said.

"We will use all of our available resources," one NYPD source said Sunday, noting that the department's Strategic Response Group - which responds to civil unrest and major events - "has a role in this agency and when needed they will be called in."

Officials from several agencies met on Sunday and are expected to confer again on Monday, according to sources.

Trump took to his Truth Social site over the weekend and said he expects to be arrested Tuesday on an indictment stemming from Bragg's ongoing probe into alleged hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels in the lead-up to the 2016 election. Daniels claims she had an affair with Trump in 2006, which he has denied.

The former president's online call to supporters has federal, state and local authorities on alert, according to sources.

The sources said several agencies will meet again Monday to discuss security measures that include restricting vehicle access to the Manhattan courthouse, and deploying inside and outside the building. nypost.com  nbcnews.com  abc7ny.com


Trump Calling for Nationwide Protests
New York law enforcement prepares for possible indictment as Trump says he expects to be arrested Tuesday
In an echo of Trump's appeals to supporters in the wake of the 2020 presidential election, he called Saturday for action, writing: "Protest, take our nation back."

Should he be indicted, the former president is expected to surrender and go through the process of being processed and arraigned at the courthouse, which includes fingerprinting and mug shot, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

However, there could be some accommodations to expedite how quickly Trump is processed and how long he is in the building, the source said. For example, the source explained, officials would try to get him in front of a judge immediately. cnn.com


NY Times: Even after the FEC & Fed Prosecutors Pass on Charges Manhattan Progressive DA Intends on Charging Trump
Last ditch effort to sink Trump

Even After the episode has been examined by both the Federal Election Commission and federal prosecutors in New York; neither took action against Mr. Trump.

It would not be a simple case. Prosecutors are expected to use a legal theory that has not been assessed in New York courts, raising the possibility that a judge could throw out or limit the charges.

A conviction would be likely to hinge on prosecutors’ proving that Mr. Trump reimbursed Mr. Cohen and falsified business records when he did so, possibly to hide an election law violation. nytimes.com


Law Enforcement Gears Up for a Potential Trump Indictment Next Week, Report Says

Trump calls for nationwide protests ahead of Tuesday's predicted arrest
 

Facial Recognition Expands Across All Industries
Why Is TSA Adding Facial Recognition to Airports?
DALLAS - In 2022, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began adding facial recognition technology to the security process at airports across the country. The move is part of a larger effort to use biometrics in airport security, which will include facial scanning.

Airport facial recognition aims to help the TSA more accurately identify known threats and prevent them from entering secure areas while making it easier for passengers to get through security efficiently. In addition to making travel safer, this technology will reduce wait times at airports by reducing human errors.

Facial recognition technology has been remarkably successful at identifying imposters in airport security. It has been used in airports worldwide, from London's Heathrow Airport to JFK International in New York City. The results of these efforts are staggering. Since 2018, more than 1,000 imposters have been caught attempting to use fake travel documents to enter the U.S.

The DHS has been testing facial recognition software since the early 2000s and found that it is as accurate as humans at identifying people with fake documents. According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, recent studies show the [TSA] technology is approximately 99.5% accurate in facial recognition. airwaysmag.com


How Walmart is Balancing AI & Human Workers
Walmart: 'Technology isn't taking over. It's empowering our people'

Advances based on automation and artificial intelligence (AI) have prompted many questions rooted in fear and curiosity.

The pandemic has accelerated Walmart's strategy and pushed us to meet customers where they are. It also underscored that, fundamentally, people are core to every business. At the time, sophisticated technology propelled our business forward with new services, making everyday life easier for our customers. Now, busy families can use our app to pick up groceries on the way home from gymnastics, or can have their weekly staples delivered straight to the refrigerator. But it's our associates who make the experience special-choosing the best-looking apples for your order or placing your eggs just where you like them in the refrigerator.

These human, intimate, and nuanced connections are irreplaceable. There's a profound trust in these relationships-one that we don't take for granted. The roles and responsibilities of our jobs will no doubt evolve as technology creates more efficiencies. Our business will continue to grow as a result, and our workforce will grow and change alongside it.

While automation has not had a significant impact on our headcount, it has helped us reimagine how we utilize our workforce. In creating efficiencies, our intent isn't to replace our workers, but to shift their focus to the things humans do best: connecting with each other and understanding the subtleties of people's needs, wants, and hopes. Ultimately, technology is enabling us to create more rewarding and engaging jobs that complement our people's strengths while serving customers in ways that are faster, easier, and unique to how they live.

The future of business is one that prioritizes meaningful human interactions while using technology to automate everyday tasks, the two working in harmony. fortune.com


In Case You Missed It
NRF Releases 2023 Top 50 Global Retailers List
The National Retail Federation today released its annual list of the Top 50 Global Retailers, conducted by Kantar. The 2023 Top 50 Global Retailers ranks the most impactful retailers worldwide based on their operations at the beginning of 2022.

Walmart maintains its position as the world's largest retailer, with strong growth in fewer markets, along with success from its new online marketplace and fulfillment model. Other companies from last year still leading the way in their same top spots are Amazon.com in second, followed by Schwarz Group, Aldi, Costco, Ahold Delhaize and Carrefour.

Companies that shifted spots from 2022 include Seven & I (No. 9 to No. 8), The Home Depot (No. 10 to No. 9) and IKEA (No. 8 to No. 10).  nrf.com

Click here to see the full list

Retail's 'Labor Hoarding' War
Dollar General enters the retail 'labor hoarding' war with a $100 million investment to boost scheduled hours for employees

Discount retailer Dollar General is the latest employer to join the industry's "labor hoarding" war.

The Tennessee-based discount store brand said Thursday it, too, will spend big cash this year to attract and retain its workers, following similar moves from major brands like Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Lowe's, Kroger, and more. Retailers are taking, in some cases, extraordinary measures to "hoard" workers so they won't be short-staffed when the economy picks up - even as companies in other sectors are laying people off in droves.

CEO Jeff Owen told investors to expect an additional investment of approximately $100 million in 2023 as the company aims to boost scheduled hours for store associates.

Owen pointed out that the focus on hours comes after a 23% wage increase over the past three years - a comparable rate to what other retail employers have reported in recent weeks - though he declined to disclose what the company's average wage currently is. businessinsider.com


7-Eleven wants its EV charging network to be among the largest
Convenience store chain 7-Eleven has ambitious plans for EV charging.

Bed Bath & Beyond skipping on severance payments for workers?

Trader Joe's, Lego, Bath & Body Works among American's 'most loved' brands

Retailers rolling out a recession playbook as 2023 gets rocky

Howard Schultz hands over Starbucks CEO role to Laxman Narasimhan

Last week's #1 article --

Macy's Sounds the Alarm Over Theft Surge
The retailer is rolling out new anti-theft measures

Major retailer's CEO warns of rising thefts in store - see the new anti-theft measures being taken

In response to rising shoplifting figures, Gennette announced that Macy's is now using radio frequency ID tags to better track its inventory. It is also hiring more security personnel for stores and securing high-end brands with locked cables and censors.

Last year, President Biden signed into law the Inform Consumers Act, making it harder for criminals to resell stolen goods online. Currently, the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2023 is making its way through Congress.

Macy's gave up its practice of keeping German shepherds in its Manhattan store for security sweeps in 2015. the-sun.com

Possible Deal to Shift Partial Ownership of TikTok to Walmart
Report: TikTok may be considering Walmart/Oracle deal again
Faced with a possible ban in the U.S., TikTok is reportedly taking a new look at creating a separate U.S. operation that would include Walmart and Oracle.

According to the New York Post, in response to reported demands from the Biden administration to ByteDance, the Chinese company which owns TikTok, to sell its shares in the popular short video platform or face a ban in the U.S., TikTok is privately exploring options to at least sell off its U.S. business.

Those options may include a deal that would shift partial ownership of TikTok's U.S. business to Walmart and Oracle, which was initially supported by the Trump administration in 2020.

In September 2020, Oracle and Walmart received tentative U.S. approval for a joint 20% acquisition of a new business that would be called TikTok Global. However, with the change in presidential administrations in early 2021, ByteDance reportedly lost interest in the Trump-sanctioned Oracle/Walmart deal, and instead sought to develop an alternative structure to its U.S. operations.

The nixed deal would have seen Walmart enter into commercial agreements to provide e-commerce, fulfillment, payments, measurement-as-a-service advertising, and other omnichannel services to TikTok Global.

Under the previously considered deal, TikTok Global would be responsible for providing all TikTok services to users in the U.S. and most of the rest of the world. It would be an independent American company, headquartered in the U.S., with majority U.S. ownership including the 41% of ByteDance currently held by American investors.

Oracle would serve as TikTok's secure cloud provider and store data from TikTok's estimated 100 million U.S. users in its cloud data centers. chainstoreage.com

From Russia With Love
Microsoft: Russian hackers may be readying new wave of destructive attacks

The warning comes as part of an overview of cyberattacks carried out by Russian-linked actors over the past year.

Russian hackers linked with destructive malware attacks may be preparing for a new wave of strikes, researchers with Microsoft's Digital Threat Analysis Center said Wednesday.

The warning is included in a broad overview of the cyberattacks, influence operations and strategy employed by Russia-linked actors operating in Ukraine over the past year. It notes that although most of the Russian hacking efforts appear espionage related, hackers working for Russian military intelligence "have already shown a willingness to used destructive tools outside Ukraine if instructed" and that targets in Ukraine and around the world should take notice.

Russian-aligned hacking efforts show signs of ongoing development and iteration aimed at both intelligence gathering and testing destructive malware attacks.

Along with destructive malware attacks, Wednesday's report warns about threats to military and humanitarian supply chains - both in Ukraine and abroad - as well as information operations that are likely to include hack-and-leak operations.

Russia's cyber operations against Ukraine have mostly entailed information operations and destructive wiper attacks, but more covert aspects of Russian operations makes it difficult to assess their full scope. On Tuesday, for example, Microsoft warned vendors about a since-fixed vulnerability in the Outlook email software that Russian hackers used to infiltrate more than a dozen European military, energy and transportation networks and spy unnoticed between April and December 2022, CNN and Bleeping Computer reported.

Microsoft's researchers see Russia's more overt, noisy attacks as a way for the Kremlin to test Western resolve. cyberscoop.com


Public-Private Partnership Key to Battling Cyber Threats
Opinion: The US cybersecurity strategy won't address today's threats with regulation alone

The Biden administration needs to foster greater public-private collaboration, involve global partners and help build the cyber workforce to fight growing digital threats.

Plenty of "unidentified flying objects" have appeared in the news over the past several weeks, yet cybersecurity professionals will tell you that we don't need to look up to find a more daunting and real threat to national security.

Fortunately, President Biden just released the administration's national cyber strategy. Coupled with industry collaboration, it's an effective approach that represents a new hope for a safer and more economically prosperous future. Furthermore, the strategy is a much-needed step toward a clear roadmap for collaboration between agencies and industry partners, particularly in the technology sector. Prior federal cybersecurity strategic documents have lacked specificity, materially undermining their successful implementation and inhibiting stakeholder engagement.

But it is discouraging to those of us on the frontlines of cybersecurity to see that the strategy places so many of its "eggs" in the "basket" of regulation. As we hear more from the administration on their strategy, it is critical that the federal government articulates a vision of what specific gaps can be filled by new regulation. In addition, I urge the administration to follow through on its stated intention to harmonize, streamline and deconflict any new or existing regulations. We need clear and effective rules of the road. And, if much of the responsibility for defending cyberspace is to lie with the "most capable and best-positioned actors" in the public and private sectors, it is important that the administration follows through on its stated intention to involve industry in this vital conversation.

A successful strategy must also take into account the U.S. government's responsibility to get its cyber house in order, too. The strategy notes that this will require real investment on the part of key government agencies. Congress and the administration must rise to this shared challenge and offer long-term sustainable investments. cyberscoop.com


CISA is Hiring: We want YOU to Help Defend the Nation from Cyberattacks

SVB account holders targeted with phishing, scams

San Ramon, CA: Brazen Armed Jewelry store heist leaves residents shaken
The brazen daylight armed robbery of a jewelry store at the upscale City Center Bishop Ranch shopping center in San Ramon has left local residents and shop owners shaken. It happened on Friday around 2:30 p.m. at Heller Jewelers and was recorded by multiple people on their cellphones in addition to the store security cameras. The videos showed gunmen pointing a gun a security guard who worked for the store. Other robbers could be seen smashing display cases and taking expensive items. The family-owned store is known to sell high-end jewelry and Rolex watches. "It looked unreal for a moment," said Luca Zanet, the general manager at Delarosa, a restaurant located across from the jewelry store. "You had to do a double take." Zanet witnessed it and said the robbery was happening with hundreds of shoppers nearby. "They must have scoped it and checked it out. They knew exactly where they were going. They went in and they went out in two or three minutes," Zanet said. "It's getting worse because the Nike store got hit twice already and then Sunglass Hut -- they got hit five times already (this year)."  cbsnews.com


Falls Church, VA: Thieves steal $500K worth of jewelry in Falls Church; Search underway for 5 suspects
Police in Virginia are asking for help finding several suspects accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry from a store in Falls Church. According to the City of Falls Church Police, the incident happened around 1:45 p.m. on Friday, March 10 at Tri State Jewelers, located at 110 W Broad Street. Investigators say that two men and three women entered the store, and while inside, the men kept the store's employees busy as the women walked around the store. During this time, police say, one of the women crawled to the store's back room and stole about $500,000 worth of jewelry. fox5dc.com


Boise, ID: Man sentenced to 90 months for identity theft scheme spanning Idaho and several Western states
A 43-year-old of Seattle was sentenced to 90 months in federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced Thursday. According to court records, from at least May 2018 through November 2020, Ryan M. Tichy executed a scheme to defraud wherein he obtained the means of identification of many individuals and used that information to create false identification documents, open credit accounts, obtain loans, takeover existing credit accounts, and make purchases. The fraudulently-obtained means of identification included names, social security numbers, dates of birth, and account numbers. After he gathered that information, Tichy would often create a fake driver's license using his picture but the victim's name. Tichy travelled around Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Nevada, and elsewhere to make fraudulent purchases. When law enforcement executed a search warrant on December 2, 2020, they discovered a mobile identity theft lab inside a trailer Tichy purchased using another person's identity. The trailer contained materials, machines, computers, and printers for use in producing counterfeit identity cards and debit/credit cards. The trailer also contained foils, blank stock for driver's licenses, an embosser, a card punch, printers, counterfeit driver's licenses in various stages of completion, and counterfeit credit cards.  localnews8.com


Couple wanted by police for allegedly using fraudulent means to steal from Walmart using the store's self-checkout system and make off with a shopping cart full of me

El Paso, TX: Police ask public to help identify $2000 O'Reilly's Auto parts theft suspect