Secret Service Outlines Warning Signs for Mass Attacks in US
91 Killed in 27 Mass Attacks Across 18 States in 2018
In a new report that identifies trends and warning signs of mass attacks, the Secret Service identified 27 attacks across 18 states where 91 people were killed and 107 injured in mass attacks in 2018. The report noted that nearly all the attackers made some type of threatening or concerning communication prior to the attack, nearly a third had histories related to domestic violence, and all but two of the attacks were committed by men. One additional trend was noted among attackers--two-thirds of the attackers had a history of mental health issues, including depression or suicidal behavior. edmdigest.com

Workplace violence affects 2 million Americans per year
About 2 million American workers annually are victims of workplace violence. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration defines workplace violence as "any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the worksite."

Media accounts of tragic and sensational violent acts by disgruntled fellow workers certainly capture attention. But such cases make up a relatively small percentage of workplace violence events. More often, the problem stems from outside the workplace. Robberies by outsiders far outnumber violent acts by fellow workers.

Employee safety is the main reason to take such precautions, but workplace violence poses an economic price tag as well. The private Workplace Violence Research Institute estimates the annual cost of violence in the workplace to be $36 billion. advantagenews.com
 

Sydney security firm an alleged 'front' for $80M organized crime syndicate
Linked to crime groups in Australia and abroad
A couple who operated a south-west Sydney security firm have been arrested over their alleged role in running the business as a "front" for an $80 million money laundering syndicate linked to organised crime groups in Australia and abroad. Gagandeep Pahwa, 30, was taken by surprise when he was met by detectives as he arrived at the Guildford office of Assure Protection Services on Thursday.

It is understood the operation is alleged to involve the physical collection of cash by the security business, which offers security services for retail, industrial and commercial industries. The collected cash was then moved through a series of financial transactions in order to disguise its origins and to "give it legitimacy," police said. The cash was then allegedly withdrawn and returned to organised crime syndicates or remitted offshore.

Investigators seized around $400,000 in cash at Guildford, a number of money counting machines, a small amount of drugs, computers, three vehicles and designer clothing. Mr Pahwa's domestic partner and the director of the company behind the security business, Gopali Prtha Dahl, 30, was also arrested, along with another 29-year-old employee.

The trio were targeted by investigators from the NSW Criminal Groups Squad, as part of a long-running and complex investigation into an alleged money laundering syndicate that is believed to have handled $80 million in the space of three to four years. smh.com.au

What the CFO's Are Reading
"DOJ Puts C-Suite Execs in Crosshairs"
DOJ: "While pursuit of criminal and civil remedies against corporations is important, we should always focus on the individuals responsible for misconduct."

The Shift in Focus to Individuals

Stating a nationwide policy, former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein made clear the new approach: "While pursuit of criminal and civil remedies against corporations is important, we should always focus on the individuals responsible for misconduct. Cases against corporate entities allow us to recover fraudulent proceeds, reimburse victims, and deter future wrongdoing. But the deterrent impact on the individual people responsible for wrongdoing is sometimes attenuated in corporate prosecutions."

He continued: "The most effective deterrent to corporate criminal misconduct is identifying the people who commit crimes and sending them to prison. Absent extraordinary circumstances, a corporate resolution should not protect individuals from criminal liability."

To that end, executives need to be certain that their companies:

• Have aggressive anti-fraud and anti-corruption measures in place;

• Regularly review and confirm that their procedures adequately facilitate the detection of misconduct by subordinates;

• Act quickly and diligently on any "red flags" brought to their attention; and

• Document compliance with relevant laws, regulations and corporate procedures through traceable forms of communications. (For example, if a government investigation is commenced, it is imperative that senior executives can trace corporate communications and identify any breakdowns in control protocols).

Finally, executives must be aware that their corporate communications, whether with their general counsel or company counsel, are not necessarily privileged. Although it is true that communications with general counsel and company counsel are likely covered by attorney-client privilege, the company, not the corporate individual, is entitled to the privilege. Therefore, the company may choose to waive its privilege and share all relevant communications with authorities without permission from the individual who made the communications. cfo.com

Editor's Note: The opioid epidemic and subsequent federal investigations are changing the legal landscape for corporate America well beyond the pharmaceutical industry itself. And compliance groups need to be aware of the DOJ's new stance. The article is worth the read.

Armored Truck Spills $175K Onto Atlanta Highway
Police Want it Back After Drivers Stopped to Grab It
An armored truck's door sprang open Tuesday night on Interstate 285 on the north side of Atlanta, spilling cash across the highway. While the truck was making it rain, drivers pulled over to join in a literal cash grab. The armored truck company estimated the unintended gift at $175,000, the Dunwoody Police Department said.

Those driving past got out their phones and shot video of cars and trucks pulling over, with people jumping out to try to scoop up bills blowing in the wind. Police responded around 8 p.m. to 911 calls that more than 15 vehicles had stopped on the busy interstate to pick up money that had fallen off an armored vehicle. cnn.com
 

Are Your Teams Ready?
First hurricane watch of 2019 issued as potential Hurricane Barry is expected to strike Louisiana
The first hurricane watch of the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season was issued at 5 p.m. Wednesday as the blob of storms and clouds in the northern Gulf of Mexico continues to organize gradually, the National Hurricane Center said.

The storm, which would be named Barry if and when, as is expected, it intensifies to tropical storm status, is on a path to make landfall as a likely Category 1 hurricane. According to the hurricane center's latest forecast and cone graphic, issued Wednesday at 5 p.m., Barry is predicted to make landfall somewhere between the mouth of the Mississippi River and eastern Texas.sun-sentinel.com

Check out this Daily Special Report on how retailers respond to major hurricanes.

What the CFO's Are Reading
Calculate the Real Cost of Catastrophe
One of the most insidious threats to corporate value is sudden disruption from events like fire, hurricane, flood, earthquake, or cyberattack - disruption that is ostensibly insured. The problem is, there's always a portion of that kind of loss that's uninsured. We tend to be vaguely aware of this risk, but rarely do we put numbers to it.

Hidden Loss
In two examples, whether it's a flood or a cyberattack, damaged companies often rely too heavily on the coverage provided by their insurance. Although the insurance covered some of the damage, it did not make the organizations whole. It would have been more cost-effective for those companies to invest upfront in loss prevention and business continuity efforts.

Formerly Nebulous Risks
Although these losses in value should not surprise CFOs, the conversation around uninsured loss has largely been under the radar and definitely in the abstract. I believe that illustrating this phenomenon and quantifying the risk of uninsured loss can help CFOs make better strategic decisions - before learning the hard way. To quantify the risk of lost enterprise value in a disruption, we developed the total financial loss model. In quantifying risk, this model effectively calculates the true value of resilience.

Modeling the Total Loss -- Seeing the Impact -- Read more  cfo.com
 

WOW - Goldman Sachs Gets Bullish on Big Box Retailers
Best Retail Stock News in Years
In a world of retail "winners and losers" Goldman Sachs is betting on big-box retailers it feels will shoot up over the next year.

Goldman Sachs recommends Target, Costco, Home Depot and Walmart among others because of their strong market share growth, defensiveness against an unknown trade war with China and years of investments finally paying off.

Target is Goldman's "best idea," because of sustained strong comp growth "accompanied by ongoing store closures and bankruptcies of other brick and mortar retailers," said McShane.

BJ's, Lowes, National Vision, O'Reilly Automotive, Tractor Supply, and William-Sonoma are also on Goldman Sachs' "buy" list.

"We are at an inflection point for several companies where we are starting to see a resumption of operating income dollar growth; demonstrating not only the strong top line execution but also a point of leveraging years of investment to become true omni-channel retailers," Goldman Sachs's Kate McShane said in a note to clients on Thursday. cnbc.com

Bed Bath & Beyond to Review Assets & Reorganize
"Bed Bath & Beyond has now posted negative comps for 12 of the past 13 quarters. Operating loss totaled $406.8 million, from a profit of $81.2 million a year ago. Net income fell to a whopping $371 million from a profit of $43.6 million one year prior.

Interim-CEO Mary Winston, who took the helm in May following Steven Temares' departure, outlined a four-part strategic plan Wednesday, which includes reviewing its assets. In addition to its namesake brand, the company operates Cost Plus World Market, BuyBuy Baby, Christmas Tree Shops, Harmon Face Values, andThat!, PersonalizationMall and One Kings Lane.

The move could bode particularly well with the company's shareholders, who in April urged Bed Bath and Beyond to sell its underperforming assets, namely Cost Plus World Market, PersonalizationMall and Christmas Tree Shops, with the possibility of a BuyBuy Baby sale, too.

Bed Bath & Beyond is "in the process of evaluating the various retail banners [it operates] to better understand their strategic and financial contributions to the portfolio," she said. "Following this review, we will determine the appropriate next steps."

In addition to reviewing its assets, Winston also noted that the company is looking to stabilize its sales and drive topline growth, reset its cost structure and refine its organizational structure. retaildive.com

Angry Customers & More Lawsuits?
How Smart Tech and Biometric Data Collection Will Impact Retail
As companies develop smart fabrics and other wearable technologies, consumers are simultaneously awakening to the adverse outcomes of too much data collection. Specifically, biometric data, which gathers information based on a person's physical traits and identity.

Though retailers and brands might be tempted to collect as much data as possible in the name of marketing to their customers, cybersecurity, legal and healthcare experts warn that companies must be judicious about the biometric data they collect. They also must remain aware of emerging privacy regulations and become more transparent about their data collection. Failure to do so, multiple sources told Retail Dive, will not only damage brands' reputation, but also open them up to legal liabilities.

The smart fabrics products and wearable devices developed for consumer use aren't required to comply with HIPPA regulations, but companies developing these technologies will need to pay attention to the current patchwork of U.S. state and international data breach regulations, Suzanne Widup, senior consultant for Verizon's RISK Team, told Retail Dive in an interview.

Aside from a PR backlash, failing to adhere to U.S. and international regulations could leave companies vulnerable to consumer lawsuits. retaildive.com

From the Warehouse to an IT Position
Amazon to Spend $700M on Retraining 100K Employees - A Third of Workforce
Amazon will spend $700 million over the next six years to help retrain a third of its US workforce to adapt to an economy increasingly disrupted by automation and new technology. The training, which will be voluntary, expands upon Amazon's existing programs and initiatives. The idea is to help Amazon employees progress into more advanced jobs or even new positions outside of the company. It will be available to 100,000 workers by 2025, according to the report.

Under the plan, workers could use the training to transfer between positions they might not have been qualified for. For example, warehouse workers in fulfillment centers could be trained for technical roles in IT and nontechnical workers could be retrained as software engineers.

Amazon's initiative comes as robots and artificial intelligence are advancing and more capable of replacing human jobs. cnn.com

Ice Cream Lickers Are Prompting Grocery Stores to Fight Back by Locking Freezer Doors, Requiring an Employee for Assistance
While many retail foods come in packaging that can display evidence of possible product tampering, ice cream may not be one of them. In some brands, cartons tops can easily come off and be put back on, a bit of a design flaw that has led to a recent spate of "ice cream lickers" who flick their tongues across the flavored frozen treats and then place them back in the freezer aisle. Now, some grocery stores are fighting back.

According to Thrillist, a number of stores around the country have taken preventive measures to avoid falling victim to ice cream vandalism. Some have been locking their freezer doors and putting up signs directing customers to find an employee for assistance.

Ice cream lickers are taking a considerable risk. Tampering with a consumer product is a crime that can carry a prison term of up to 20 years and a $10,000 fine. mentalfloss.com
 

7/11 Day is Today: 7-Eleven to Give Away 9 Million Slurpees to Mark 92nd Birthday

Former Home Depot CEO Bob Nardelli Goes to Pot

American Eagle to start selling cannabis-based products this year

Lululemon Brings 20,000 Square Foot Experiential Store To Chicago

Amazon reportedly focused on drones for home safety service

Huawei reportedly cuts shipments of its phones


Quarterly Results
Alimentation Couch-Tard (Circle K) Q1 merchandise comp's 3.4% in U.S., 4.2% in Canada, and 4.7% in Europe, revenue down 3.7%
Bed Bath & Beyond Q1 comp's down 6.6%, net sales down 6.6%