Video Analytics Expanding
BLS: Workplace Shooting Fatalities Up 26% in 2016
2018 Study - At Least 300 Fatalities Annually
With spate of workplace shootings, offices devote more resources to security, experts say

The days of an open-door policy where employees and visitors could move freely about work premises are over, security experts say.

John Dony, director of the Campbell Institute at the nonprofit National Safety Council. "It was only in the past two or three years when we've seen a much bigger spate of events at office workplaces as well as factory floors has there been a turn in attention to that."

In 2016, nearly 400 people died from bullet wounds at work, an increase of 26% - 83 shootings since 2015.

Companies have focused much of their attention on tightening access through technology like electronic badges and video surveillance, rather than bolstering security with gun-carrying guards, Dony said.

The most secure buildings prevent a familiar lunch vendor from entering a work area, said Robert McCrie, deputy chair of the Department of Security, Fire, and Emergency Management at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Some buildings have extended monitoring to the elevators, remotely controlling where a visitor can go.

McCrie envisions that technology advancing further. Casinos use video analytics to identify people who are banned from the premises and eventually, retailers and offices will too, he said. northjersey.com

71 Cities Across America Require "Verified" Response to Security Alarms
NBAA: 94% of All Alarms Are False - IACP Says 98%
Some cities have issued fines for a false activation since the late nineties while other ordinances allow a "non-response" when a business or home has had repeated false alarms.

The exception to the rule is when a hold-up, panic or medical emergency alarm is activated.

Other cities have outsourced collection of false alarm fines and consumer education to a company called CryWolf Services.

Other cities have created ordinances that make the alarm company responsible for false alarms and issue fines to the company instead of the alarm user.

False alarms expected to triple in the next five years. privateofficer.com

FBI, ICE find state driver's license photos are a gold mine
for facial-recognition searches
A cache of records shared with The Washington Post reveals that agents are scanning millions of Americans' faces without their knowledge or consent.

Thousands of facial-recognition requests, internal documents and emails over the past five years, obtained through public-records requests by Georgetown Law researchers and provided to The Washington Post, reveal that federal investigators have turned state departments of motor vehicles databases into the bedrock of an unprecedented surveillance infrastructure.

Since 2011, the FBI has logged more than 390,000 facial-recognition searches of federal and local databases, including state DMV databases, the Government Accountability Office said last month, and the records show that federal investigators have forged daily working relationships with DMV officials. In Utah, FBI and ICE agents logged more than 1,000 facial-recognition searches between 2015 and 2017, the records show. Names and other details are hidden, though dozens of the searches are marked as having returned a "possible match." washingtonpost.com

Social Media Attacks on LinkedIn
Tempe, AZ: Starbucks: 6 Police Officers asked to leave - they made 1 customer feel 'unsafe'
Took Corporate the Entire Weekend to Respond - Talk about Slow Response - Media Field Day
Starbucks has apologized. Starbucks has apologized to police in Arizona after six officers said they were asked to leave one of the coffee chain's stores last week because another customer said the officers made them feel unsafe. The incident was brought to light by the Tempe Officers Association, and soon the hashtag #DumpStarbucks started trending on Twitter. But even as some people online voiced concerns about the perceived hostility to law enforcement, others said the encounter highlighted distrust of police in a city where an officer's fatal shooting of a 14-year-old boy earlier this year has sparked criticism of police's use of force. washingtonpost.com

Pleasant Prairie, WI: Flash Mob: Gone in 30 seconds, 10 people steal $30,000 of merchandise - North Face store The mob, all males, quickly took clothes from a rack full of lightweight coats and then rushed to the exit. The theft took place at the North Face store at Pleasant Prairie Premium Outlets in Wisconsin around 7:45 p.m. on July 1. "Ten black males entered the store and each grabbed as much merchandise as they could carry before running to the cars and leaving the property," said Pleasant Prairie Police Sgt. Aaron Schaffer. theepochtimes.com

Store Closures Up 20% Over Mid-Year '18
12,000 shops could close in 2019 - 7,000 Already Slated
The record year for closings was 2017, with 8,139 shuttered stores. The 25% Tariffs could play a major role. yahoo.com

See full list on second page

2019 June Job Cut Report: Retail Leads All Sectors
Challenger Report Shows Highest First-Half Total Since 2009
QUARTERLY JOB CUT ANNOUNCEMENTS FALL 26% FROM Q1; YTD CUTS UP 35%
Employers announced 41,977 cuts in June, down 28% from the 58,577 cuts announced in May. Despite the monthly drop, June's cuts are 13% higher than the 37,202 cuts announced in June of last year. This is the eleventh consecutive month job cuts are higher than the corresponding month the year prior.

U.S.-based employers announced plans to cut 140,577 jobs from their payrolls in the second quarter of this year, down 26% from the 190,410 cuts announced in the first quarter. Despite the drop, Q2 cuts are 34% higher than the 104,800 cuts announced in the same quarter last year.

Last quarter's total is the highest for the second quarter since 2015, when 147,458 cuts were recorded. So far this year, employers have announced plans to cut 330,987 jobs, a 35% increase from the 245,179 cuts announced through the first half of last year. This year marks the highest first-half total since 2009, when 896,675 job cuts were announced.

"Job cuts are trending higher overall. In addition to Retail, we've seen significant cuts in the Industrial Manufacturing and Automotive sectors in recent months," said Challenger.

Retail continues to lead all sectors in 2019 with 53,248 cuts, 7,187 of which occurred in the second quarter. That is 27% fewer cuts than the 73,066 announced in the first half of 2018. challengergray.com

Redefining the Global Store Experience with Self-Checkout
U.S. World's Largest Self-Checkout Market
675,000 Self-Checkouts by 2024
A new report from RBR, the London-based firm which tracks the global self-checkout penetration rate and market shares among equipment providers said self-checkout sales reached a new high in 2018.

More than 80,000 self-checkout units were shipped worldwide last year, as both new users and re-adopters invested in the technology, the firm said in its recently released annual report. Front-end store transformations continue in the U.S., the world's largest self-checkout market, as retailers invest in store environments. Some retailers are installing more units and upgrading older terminals.

Albertsons, which had previously withdrawn self-checkout machines, is rolling out the technology on a larger scale than before, according to RBR. Albertsons recently announced it was implementing Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions' self-checkout systems.

Another notable self-checkout development in the U.S involved Costco. The warehouse club operator disclosed in June that it was testing around 125 self checkout units, reversing a 2013 decision to remove some terminals, according to RBR.

Despite the technology already being well established in Europe, 2018 saw an increase in investment in self-checkout solutions from some of the region's largest grocery players, from hypermarket chains to discounters. France's Carrefour and Germany's Lidl rolled out units in a number of countries, while a range of domestic retailers piloted the technology, including Pyaterochka in Russia and Megamark Group in Italy. Pilots and rollouts continued in Latin America too, where retailers have implemented self-checkout solutions only relatively recently, with activity up in countries including Brazil, Colombia and Mexico.

Alan Burt who leads RBR's research forecasts the number of global self-checkout installations will reach 675,000 by 2024. retailleader.com

A Message From Byron Smith, ISCPO Chairman
With peak season just around the corner, start thinking about how you and your teams will prepare for this 2019 holiday season. Points to consider:

● Starting your planning early
● Reflect on what worked and what didn't
● Invest time and training in your people
● Review your 3rd party resources
● Focus on increased Ecommerce business
● Leverage technology and be innovative
● Always expect the unexpected

Your continued support is greatly appreciated as we are already planning for the ISCPO 2020 Conference. Mark your calendars for March 4th and 5th to be back again in Dallas, Texas.

If you haven't had a chance to check out our brand-new podcast series, ISCPO 360 Security Podcast where we chat about the latest in supply chain protection with the best in the business. Read more

U.S. DOL: June Jobs Report - 224,000 Jobs Added

U.S. DOL: Tornado Preparedness and Response

7-Eleven Testing Scan and Pay With Smartphones System

Austin, TX passes city ordinance allowing homeless sleeping on sidewalks


Quarterly Results
7-Eleven Q1 U.S. comp's up 3.4%, Seven & I Q1 total revenue down 0.2%