California DOJ Launches First-of-its-Kind ORC Partnership
The state enlisted more than a dozen retailers to help fight organized theft

Retailers joining forces with California DOJ to fight organized retail crimes

Retailers in California are banding together to fight organized retail crimes.

Corporations like Home Depot are teaming up with other businesses and online marketplaces to protect their goods and merchandise from being stolen and resold through e-commerce and third party sites.

"These rings of criminals go beyond petty shoplifting," said Rory Stallard, with Home Depot's assets protection investigation team. "They are professional thieves running a business, stealing from retailers and our communities."

California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Tuesday announced a first-of-its-kind commitment between the state's Department of Justice and businesses, which will tackle these complex and orchestrated crime rings.

The new partnership includes more than a dozen retailers and online marketplaces. Together, they committed to help in the "detection and prosecution" of large-scale theft and fraud by individuals or groups that steal goods from brick-and-mortar stores and or the retail supply chain.

Offline retailers like The Home Depot, Target, and Albertsons, as well as online marketplaces eBay, Amazon, and Etsy have endorsed the agreement, which is thought to be the first of its kind. It requires all stakeholders-shops, e-commerce players, and law enforcement-to communicate and collaborate more freely and frequently.

He said every form of retail theft or retail crime disrupts the supply chain. "It hurts retailers and businesses and puts the public at risk," Bonta said.

Bonta also said the only way of stopping organized retail crimes is by working together.

"By agreeing to pool our intel and our investigations and to share in the detection and reporting of retail crimes we will be nimble, we will be in sync and we will be much more organized," Bonta said.

He said this isn't the only answer in fighting organized retail crimes but he calls it unique.

He says they're also launching an online portal through the DOJ's website where people can submit complaint or tips. abc7.com  qz.com

   RELATED: Calif. AG faces tough questions as he touts organized theft crackdown


Facial Recognition - Locked Up Merchandise - More Security - New Legislation
Retailers fight back against the crime epidemic with both new & old tactics

Here's how retailers are responding to increasing crime

Retailers in New York City are using facial recognition tech to stop crime, while other companies are putting more merchandise in locked cases

As American retailers continue to grapple with theft, some are integrating new security technology while others are relying on more tried-and-true methods to address crime.

In New York City, there were more than 63,000 shoplifting complaints last year - a 45% jump from 2021, according to a recent New York Post analysis.

In response, some local retailers started using facial recognition software to identify repeat offenders. Other businesses have opted for more traditional security measures, placing merchandise in locked cases and adding guards.

Locked up merchandise

Across the country, businesses are putting items under lock and key to deter theft. It's not a new strategy, but recent comments suggest it may become more common. Other companies like Walgreens are testing store concepts where most products are kept out of sight entirely.

More money for guards

Shoppers may be noticing more security guards at stores. About one-third of NRF survey respondents last year said they were increasing their budget for guards. In some cases, the increased security presence isn't human. In February, Lowe's began testing security robots at four stores across Philadelphia, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Calls for legislation

Industry groups like the NRF are calling for federal legislation to help crack down on organized retail crime. The bipartisan Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, which has been introduced in the House and Senate, would establish a new investigative unit within the Department of Homeland Security to help combat retail crime. If passed, the bill would follow other legislative efforts at the state and local levels. newsnationnow.com


Home Depot Sounds the Alarm Over Store Theft & Violence

Home Depot Beefs Up Security, Locks Up More Items
'We're investing in more security guards': The Home Depot CEO warns that theft is a 'big problem' for retail - says he even has to lock up small $50 items

A growing trend of organized retail crime is now not just eating into company profits, it's threatening the safety of workers.

"It's a big problem for retail," said Home Depot CEO Ted Decker on CNBC's Squawk Box. "This isn't the random shoplifter anymore."

The home improvement company is still mourning the loss of two employees - Gary Rasor, 83, and Blake Mohs, 26 - who were killed in separate theft incidents in the past year.

Organized retail crime and theft are growing in both scope and complexity across the country, according to a study from the National Retail Federation - to the extent that former Home Depot CEO Bob Nardelli recently described it as an "epidemic ... spreading faster than COVID."

What's behind this alarming trend?

Theft at the Home Depot has been "growing double-digit year over year," the retailer's VP of asset protection, Scott Glenn, told ABC News earlier this month.

"More and more we're seeing the risk being brought into the stores, and people being hurt or people even being killed in many cases because these folks, they just don't care about the consequence," Glenn said.

To reduce the risk of theft and other crimes in its stores, Home Depot has started locking up high-value items, some of which Decker says may surprise customers. Decker said the company is increasingly concerned over the safety of their employees and customers. As a result, they've invested more in security guards, more lighting in their parking lots and recording towers.

"It's not a place in retail that many of us thought we would be," he says.  moneywise.com


Progressive DAs Turning Theft Into a Lucrative & Low-Risk Career?
Why Shoplifting Has Become a Promising Career

The growth of ORC rings and less severe shoplifting laws present huge challenges to retailers

As most retailers know, ORC is a term used to describe the theft of merchandise from stores by organized groups or individuals. In other words, it's a business. And for the individuals involved, it's a career. In fact, some of these "organizations" involve one or more family members, potentially turning ORC into a mom-and-pop operation.

So, what are retailers doing now to address this unfortunate phenomenon? Many are doing the following:

• Reducing the store's points of ingress and egress.
• Installing delayed opening doors, potentially allowing for the bad actor to be caught.
• Requiring shoppers to present receipts upon leaving the stores.
• Placing frequently shoplifted items, such as razor blades, under lock and key.
• Adding tags and cables to merchandise to help make it difficult to take them off the shelf.
• Adding surveillance technologies.

However, retailers now face a hurdle many did not expect. States and district attorneys are reassessing how laws against shoplifting are enforced and how offenders are prosecuted; recent trends indicate that enforcement only occurs when thefts surpass a certain threshold value. This means a mom-and-pop ORC can walk away with goods on a regular basis valued at less than this threshold, expecting little if any prosecution. This turns many retail outlets into "freebie outlets."

California: Sun, Fun, and a (Shoplifters') Paradise

State, county, and city district attorneys around the country, especially in larger cities, are facing a significant increase in crime rates. With budgets and resources tight, district attorneys around the country sometimes must pick and choose which crimes to go after.

For instance, in Texas, one must steal more than $1500 to be charged with a felony. In South Carolina, the threshold is $2000. And while it is lower in California, $950 due to the passage of Prop 47, the proposition went one step further, creating an added prosecution safety net for those in the ORC business: the state's three-strikes law was eliminated. With three strikes and you're out, criminals could face 25 years to life in prison for committing a crime.

"When they made the changes, particularly to the retail theft... they opened this huge loophole where there's zero consequence for the behavior because I'm [referring to shoplifters] not going to be held accountable for going in and stealing."

What Can Retailers Do Now?: securityinfowatch.com


Retail Crime Surging Across the Pond
Private policing booms in London amid rise in retail crime

London businesses are increasingly turning to private security because they claim the Met won't attend shoplifting incidents.

Clapham Junction in Battersea, south-west London, is the latest area choosing to use the My Local Bobby scheme - which offers a warden service for a fee and already runs patrols in more than 60 locations in the capital.

It comes as police data shows retail crime is increasing in London, with shoplifting up 21.1% in the past year - although the area's Business Improvement District (BID) says it believes the increase is far higher.

All the wardens, known as Bobbies, must be accredited by the Security Industry Authority. This involves being trained by an approved provider before going through a criminal record check and vetting. They also undergo additional training in trauma response, duty of care, and how to make citizens arrests and use handcuffs.

Once deployed in BIDs, the Bobbies work with businesses to tackle issues such as anti-social behaviour and shoplifting, and offer help to residents and shoppers. bbc.com


Organized Retail Theft Most Common Crime in Manhattan Beach
Burglaries Down, Vehicle Theft Up in May in Manhattan Beach
Organized retail theft remains the most common crime in Manhattan Beach. According to MBPD, retail chain stores are typically targeted by suspects who steal large quantities of high-end cosmetics and alcohol. These crimes takes a few minutes to complete and involve multiple suspects. Retail chains suffer a loss in stolen retail products as well as sales. Since stolen products are often resold on the black market at lower prices, retail stores cannot compete. MBPD advises the public to only purchase goods at reputable retail chains.

During the busy summer months, MBPD urges visitors and residents to be vigilant with their personal belongings while shopping or spending the day at the beach. Make sure all vehicles and personal belongings are secured. thembnews.com


NYC crime: Retail thefts skyrocketing
John Derderian, president of Allegiance Retail Services, joined Good Day New York to discuss the retail thefts. He works with over 100 supermarkets in the city.

Officer shortage a cause of concern for interim CPD boss amid crime spike

Detroit police cracking down on illegal block parties in attempt to stop crime uptick

Extremists Are Putting 'Woke' Retailers on the Hot Seat
Are retailers afraid of being 'woke'?

Brand values, diversity efforts and customer loyalty are put to the test as extremists come for corporate America.

Pride Month has had a rough start this year, including for retailers that have attempted to celebrate it.

Recently, Belk reportedly canceled its traditional drag show in Charlotte, North Carolina, just before it was slated to begin. Days before, the department store stopped selling Pride garments for kids. Belk did not respond to questions regarding its decisions around Pride events and merchandise.

In late May, just ahead of Pride Month, people raging against Target's Pride collection in stores prompted the retailer to bowdlerize its displays.

The backlash, following years of retailers and brands embracing Pride without much incident, is emanating from the far right and serves as a test for corporate diversity efforts, values and marketing, experts say.

The phrase "Get woke, go broke" prevails on social media among those cheering the purported stock declines seen at Bud Light and Target after the pushes to boycott those companies.

Videos of people wrecking Target's Pride merchandise in stores went viral. In some areas the disturbances at Target stores escalated to bomb threats tied to the Pride fallout that were ultimately deemed not credible.

Retailers' defensive moves against anti-Pride retaliations have consequences for the community and the retailers themselves, according to New York Attorney General Letitia James. On Wednesday, James said that she had sent a letter, co-signed by 14 New York city and state lawmakers, urging Target CEO Brian Cornell to reconsider the decision to remove Pride merchandise. Target declined to comment on the letter beyond its initial May 24 statement. retaildive.com


Companies Adapt to Changing Workplace
What Gen Z wants in the workplace
According to several recruiters and hiring managers from companies on the Top Workplaces list, Gen Z is making an impact on the way they conduct their jobs and on their office culture, from the significant to the small-bore.

Mental safety is also a major priority. Young people, aware of the potential consequences of overwork and burnout, are making very different choices than past generations when it comes to work-life balance.

Although Gen Z has only been in the workplace for a couple of years, work is already changing in response to their new demands. In studies, Gen Z tends to be split when it comes to remote work: Some appreciate the flexibility and lack of a commute, while others, having already spent years at home in tiny apartments and group homes or with their parents, are very ready to return.

Gen Z's need for meaningful work has also required some offices to be more transparent about the purpose of what they're asking their more junior employees to do, as well as providing clear pathways to advancement. washingtonpost.com


Homeless Numbers Rise in U.S. Cities
The number of homeless people counted on streets and in shelters around the U.S. has broadly risen this year, according to a Wall Street Journal review of data from around the nation.

The Journal reviewed data from 150 entities that count homeless people in areas ranging from cities to entire states. More than 100 places reported increases in early 2023 counts compared with 2022, and collectively, their numbers indicate the U.S. might see a sharper climb than in recent years. Most major urban areas reporting data so far have seen increases, including Chicago, Miami, Boston and Phoenix.

The largest number in the Journal's data review came from San Diego County, which counted 10,264 homeless people, a 22% increase from last year. Migrant arrivals are a factor in some places. Chicago said roughly 2,200 asylum seekers in shelters were included in a homeless count that surged 58% from a count last year that preceded the migrant influx.

If this trend holds, the U.S. could notch a sharper climb after several recent years of smaller recorded increases. wsj.com


The Retail Impact of the UPS Strike
What the potential UPS strike could mean for your packages
More than 340,000 UPS workers represented by the Teamsters union are threatening to strike over pay, hours and working conditions if there is no agreement in contract talks between the company and the union. If a strike takes place, it would be the largest single-employer strike in US history.

The work stoppage would also kick off as shoppers head into the back-to-school season and retailers prepare for the peak holiday stretch later in the year.

How bad could it get? Logistics experts predict that a short UPS strike would not be as devastating as it was in 1997 because things have changed in the intervening quarter-century: There are more shipping alternatives, for example. However, if the strike lasts longer than a week, there will be some empty shelves, higher prices, and slower package deliveries for customers, they say.

In a worst case scenario, a longer-term UPS strike could cause major disruptions to the US supply chain network. cnn.com


Retailers are preparing for a discount-heavy, down holiday season: CNBC survey
Two-thirds of respondents expect consumers to be looking for discounts during peak retail season.

Dollar General expanding to its 48th state

Overall supermarket traffic slumps; Trader Joe's Grows

Amazon, Starbucks, Others Vow To Help 250,000 Refugees In Europe Get Jobs

New Ransomware Groups Hit the Scene
Fresh Ransomware Gangs Emerge As Market Leaders Decline

The ransomware landscape is energized with the emergence of smaller groups and new tactics, while established gangs like LockBit see fewer victims.

There was a rise in the number of ransomware victims in May compared to the previous month, although LockBit, the leading ransomware group, saw a 30% decrease in observed victims (110 to 77) from April to May.

That drying up was offset by several new branded groups entering the scene, contributing to an overall increase in observed ransomware victims, according to GuidePoint Security's latest GRIT report.

The May GRIT report highlighted a diverse slate of active threat groups, with 28 observed groups claiming victims. There was a 13.57% increase in publicly posted ransomware victims from April to May, and 410 incidents total, led by victims in the United States - far and away the most targeted country.

While there isn't enough data to make a definitive hypothesis, GuidePoint Security threat intelligence consultant Nic Finn notes he has observed some of the new groups significantly lowering their initial ransomware demand.

"If this trend continues, it could indicate that ransomware groups are attempting to shorten the time between victimization and ransomware payment," he says.

Emergence of New Ransomware Groups

GRIT has also identified other fresh-faced ransomware groups on the scene, such as 8Base, Malas, Rancoz, and BlackSuit, each with its own distinct characteristics and targets.

These emerging threat groups have deployed a combination of established and innovative tactics, aiming to blend in and profit amid the crowded ransomware landscape, explains Finn. darkreading.com


Infostealers Sweeping Up Business Data
100K+ Infected Devices Leak ChatGPT Accounts to the Dark Web

Infostealers are as alive as ever, wantonly sweeping up whatever business data might be of use to cybercriminals, including OpenAI credentials.

In the last year, at least 100,000 devices infected by various infostealer malwares have leaked ChatGPT credentials to the Dark Web.

Infostealers can collect just about anything: information about a target machine, cookies and browser histories, documents, and so on. More often than not, hackers profit off of this kind of bounty not just by utilizing it themselves, but by reselling it on the Dark Web. For example, online marketplaces regularly traffic in logs that contain victims' account credentials for popular applications.

From June 2022 through last month, cybersecurity firm Group-IB tracked how many of these for-sale logs expose ChatGPT accounts. In total, it counted 101,134.

ChatGPT Logins the Tip of the Iceberg

Last December - the first month ChatGPT was made available to the public - the researchers tracked 2,766 Dark Web stealer logs containing compromised accounts. That number surpassed 11,000 the following month and doubled two months after that. By May, the figure was up to 26,802.

In other words, the trendline is clearly only moving in one direction.

But ChatGPT credentials are almost beside the point, says Mike Parkin, senior technical engineer at Vulcan Cyber. "Infostealers can be an issue, at least in part, because they're not as outwardly destructive as, say, ransomware, which is hard to miss. A well obfuscated infostealer can be much harder to detect, precisely because it doesn't make itself known."

Because organizations can more easily miss infostealers than certain other kinds of malware, they're liable to realize their sensitive data is gone only after it's too late. darkreading.com


Weaknesses in Third-Party Risk Management Practices
Why assessing third parties for security risk is still an unsolved problem

A recent ranking of the most cyber-secure companies reveals weaknesses in current third-party risk management practices.

A Forbes article is making the rounds right now about America's most cyber-secure companies. 

This list is made by SecurityScorecard, one of the flagship companies in the third-party risk management (TPRM) industry. The challenge that TPRM companies have is rather simple: Provide a mechanism for companies that do business with other companies to evaluate the risk that their vendors present to them, from a cybersecurity perspective. SecurityScorecard and its primary competitor, BitSight, use a similar methodology: Create a risk score (sort of like your credit score), evaluate companies, and score them. Sounds easy, right?

Nope. Imagine if the credit reporting agencies decided that they'd start evaluating large enterprises with the same credit scoring algorithm that they use for me, as an individual. Of course they'll look awful! Think about the size of Google's perimeter - all its publicly visible IP addresses - against Intel (which came in first on the Forbes list). One of these is predominantly a chip manufacturer, and I seriously hope they have a small external footprint. This tells us nothing about Intel's cybersecurity practices, which I hope are heavily focused less on their website security (which contributes to their rating) and more on their product and manufacturing security (which don't contribute to their rating). Google, on the other hand, looks like one of the slum lords of the internet. Their addressable IP space is one of the largest on the planet, so of course they'll look bad from the outside at a cursory glance, especially if one of your measures is the size of someone's attack surface.

The TPRM problem is yet to be solved. Companies have a real need to understand the actual risks they inherit from their vendors, including both intrinsic risk (risk the vendor brings to you) and usage risk (risk created by how you're using the vendor). Unfortunately, neither the scoring space nor the questionnaire space are solving this problem. csoonline.com


Are the Risks of AI Overblown?
Generative AI Has Its Risks, But the Sky Isn't Falling

The threat organizations face with GenAI is not new, but it could speed how quickly private data reaches a wider audience.

Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and large language models (LLMs) are the disruptive technologies du jour, redefining how enterprises do business and spurring the debate on just how much AI will change the way civilization interacts with computers in the future. The hyperbole is reaching epic proportions as social scientists and pundits debate the End Times facing civilization due to smarter and potentially proactive computing. Perhaps some perspective is in order.

A recent report from Israeli venture firm Team8, "Generative AI and ChatGPT Enterprise Risk," addresses some of the realistic technical, compliance, and legal risks GenAI and LLMs place on corporate boards, C-suites, and cybersecurity personnel. The report underscored the potential operational and regulatory vulnerabilities of GenAI, but cautioned that some concerns might be premature. One concern - that exposing private data submitted to a GenAI application such as ChatGPT might make that data available to others in near real time - is discredited in the report. darkreading.com


ChatGPT and data protection laws: Compliance challenges for businesses

The future of passwords and authentication

Thieves continue to target CVS stores across the DC region
The string of CVS thefts across the D.C. region continues. The latest one happened Tuesday in Hyattsville. The crooks are becoming more brazen, robbing in the daytime, scaring employees, and customers. They have robbed the CVS on Queens Chapel Road in Hyattsville twice in two weeks - walking in aisles, filling up bags or carts, and leaving out the door. Surveillance video from Tuesday shows two suspects, one dressed in a red hooded sweatshirt, the other a black one, robbing the beauty aisle, and emptying shelves. Nearly two weeks ago, three thieves hit the same CVS - grabbed items, dumped them in a shopping cart, and took off in a matter of seconds. Prince George's County police are reviewing surveillance videos to see if these robberies are connected to the other CVS robberies in the D.C. region. FOX 5 spoke to an employee who didn't want to be identified. 'It's sickening. I've been there for three, four, years now. It's just getting worse," they said. "We work hard to keep that CVS intact, and you got people like that who come in and steal whatever they want, and it's no consequences." The employee also says there needs to be stiffer criminal penalties for thieves and more security at stores.  fox5dc.com


West Windsor, NJ: Two men used stolen U-Haul to shoplift
Two Trenton men face multiple charges for allegedly using a stolen U-Haul truck to attempt to "haul away" stolen merchandise from Marshalls on May 3, according to the West Windsor Police Department. The men were charged with receiving stolen property and shoplifting after police responded to a call for a shoplifting in progress at the store at the Windsor Green shopping center. Police officers observed one of the men allegedly loading a cart full of women's handbags into the U-Haul truck and then covering them with women's clothing, while the other man acted as a lookout, police said. During the investigation, it was determined that the U-Haul truck had been reported stolen from Trenton, police said. The truck was valued at $120,000. Police also discovered that one man had four outstanding warrants from Trenton and one outstanding warrant from Ewing Township. The other man had outstanding warrants from Trenton and West Windsor Township. The men were processed and taken to the Mercer County Correction Center.  centraljersey.com


Raytown, MO: Search underway for thieves, 45 guns stolen during Raytown heist
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and two Kansas City-area police departments are working to find a group of thieves who stole dozens of guns from a Raytown gun store. The crime happened Friday at Blue Steel Guns & Ammo in Raytown. "Yes it concerns me. What concerns me more is that there is 45 handguns lose out there," said Steve Brackeen, owner of Blue Steel Guns & Ammo. Thieves have targeted Blue Steel Guns & Ammo more than a dozen times in its 14-year-history, but Brackeen said this is the first time they've actually gotten away with anything.  fox4kc.com


Huntington Beach, CA: Man accused of stealing $1,500 in merchandise from store in Huntington Beach, getting in stolen car
A man allegedly shoplifting from a retail store led authorities to another suspect and a stolen vehicle in Huntington Beach on Sunday. A store employee noticed the man selecting items from display shelves and leaving the store without paying, Huntington Beach Police Department said. He was then seen entering a vehicle parked in front of the store. When officers arrived, the vehicle the man entered was located, and he was detained along with a woman who was in the vehicle. After an investigation, police found that the vehicle was reported stolen. The male suspect was arrested on suspicion of grand theft, while the female suspect was taken into custody for being in possession of a stolen car, police said. Neither suspect has been identified.   ktla.com


Pullman, WA: Four suspects accused of organized retail theft
The Pullman Police Department arrested four suspects accused of organized retail theft. Operations Commander Aaron Breshears said officers were dispatched to the Pullman Walmart around 8 p.m. Sunday, responding to a report of theft at the store. They arrested 39-year-old Victoria Carpino for alleged second-degree organized retail theft, third-degree theft, second-degree burglary, second-degree attempted theft and making false statements to a public informant. Police also apprehended 39-year-old Serafin Rodriguez, 40-year-old Kandi Rodriguez and 33-year-old Shanna Wright for second-degree organized retail theft and third-degree theft.  dnews.com


Putnam, CT: Connecticut State Police ask for help identifying shoplifting suspect at Runnings Home & Farm