COVID Update

US: Over 7M Cases - 204K Dead - 4.3M Recovered
Worldwide: Over 31.6M Cases - 971K Dead - 23.2M Recovered

Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 189   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 114
*Red indicates change in total deaths

US hits coronavirus death toll of 200,000 - Largest in the World
Models created by the researchers at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation project that the death toll in the U.S. could rise to 378,321 by Jan. 1, 2021. This number falls when introducing the effects of universal mask-wearing.

Working to thread the needle between public safety and economic stability, officials await a vaccine to help usher the world to a pre-pandemic pace. thehill.com

"NYC is dead forever," in one headline
"There will be a large-scale collapse in values"
NYC retailers take big COVID-19 hit
With some employers offering work from home on a permanent basis, and others offering more space and privacy to the workers who do come in, office rents are projected to fall. In Manhattan, that re-pricing could be dramatic.

Six months into the pandemic, less than 10 percent of the city's white-collar workforce is back in the office, with less than a quarter expected back by the end of the year and only half before next summer, according to a survey by the Partnership for New York City. Broadway theaters are closed indefinitely, tourists are nowhere to be found, and the Hilton hotel in Times Square has permanently closed.

Empty or boarded-up storefronts are common along what were once the world's glitziest shopping districts while nearly two-thirds of the city's restaurants say they could be out of business by the end of the year.

Let's start at the office.............."There will be a large-scale collapse in values."

National chains like Le Pain Quotidien, Kate Spade, the Gap, Victoria's Secret and J.C. Penney have announced they will permanently close some of their New York outlets. One firm expects 7,700 retailers and restaurants in the city will close by year's end, dumping 115 million square feet onto the market. thewashingtonpost.com

  Nearly 90 percent of NYC bars and restaurants couldn't pay August rent

CDC removes guidelines saying COVID-19 can travel beyond six feet
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has pulled its updated guidance that the coronavirus is airborne and can travel distances beyond 6 feet.

"It is possible that COVID-19 may spread through the droplets and airborne particles that are formed when a person who has COVID-19 coughs, sneezes, sings, talks, or breathes," the CDC said in an update posted Friday. The CDC had said for months that the disease is mainly transmitted between people in close proximity through large droplets.

But after adding last week that tiny particles known as aerosols could transmit the virus, the agency restored its earlier guidelines about how the deadly pathogen is spread, according to the Wall Street Journal. nypost.com

California's COVID-19 positivity rate drops below 3% for the first time

Orange County, CA., could stay in the red tier longer if coronavirus testing doesn't pick up

Minnesota COVID-19 Hospital Rates Decline - Lowest Admission Level in Two Months

MIOSHA Cites 19 Businesses for COVID-19 Violations

Indiana Workplace Safety Complaints Soar in Pandemic

CDC Holiday Celebrations - 2020 Halloween Guide for the COVID-19 era

The Pre-Holiday Push for Trade Shows - Virtual Shows - The New Norm
With twelve major trade shows over the next seven weeks we have a great list of industry groups all coming together to update the groups and share the knowledge and technology that help Loss Prevention, Asset Protection, Security, and Cyber Security executives deliver strong programs and services that help keep the associates and consumers safe and secure.

Remember to visit the various Expo Halls and visit with the solution providers that support the industry.

Upcoming Conferences

• Global Security Exchange Plus - Sept 21-25
• NRF PROTECT ALL ACCESS - Sept 22-25
• CNP inFocus - Sept 22-23
• RFID Journal LIVE - Sept 30-Oct 1
• APEX Women - AP Executive Exchange - Oct 1
• ISC West 2020 - Oct 5-7
• LPRC MPACT 2020 - Oct 6-7
• RH-ISAC Cyber Intelligence Virtual Summit  - Oct 6-8
• PACT 2020 - Oct 6 & 13
• ICS Cyber Security Conference - Oct 19-22
• 2020 TMA Annual Meeting - Oct. 27-29
• ISC East 2020 - Nov. 18

Cybersecurity Trade Shows List

Kroger steps up AI deployment to combat checkout losses
Kroger has signed a deal with Irish artificial intelligence firm Everseen to use the company's technology to help stop items from passing through self-checkout stations in the grocer's stores without being scanned, according to an emailed press release.

Everseen's system uses computer vision cameras to detect if a shopper fails to scan an item and discreetly alerts a store employee, who can intervene before the customer leaves without paying for the merchandise.
Kroger began installing the Everseen equipment in stores in March and plans to deploy it at as many as 2,500 supermarkets as part of an effort to combat shrink.

"We are laser-focused on continuous improvements to customers' experience across our stores," said Mike Lamb, Kroger's VP of asset protection. "By leveraging Everseen's Visual AI and machine-learning technology, we're not only able to remove friction for the customer, but we can also remove controllable costs from the business and redirect those resources to improving the customer experience even more."

Kroger's arrangement with Everseen is part of a broad effort by store operators to stem the billions of dollars in losses they incur when shoppers and store employees neglect to scan items at check-out counters, either intentionally or by mistake. grocerydive.com

Conduct Careful Background Checks for Racism

Checking for evidence of racism has become a key litmus test for corporate recruiting and hiring.

Companies can no longer afford the fallout of installing candidates with problematic pasts in top positions.

For private-sector employers, hiring workers with any hint of racism in their past-or in their social media posts-comes with risk, regardless of their position. That risk is magnified when a new hire will have management responsibilities. An allegation of discrimination or harassment in the workplace could quickly bring to light a comment or an act that the hiring company should have vetted. It will be Exhibit 1 for a jury in a negligent-hiring lawsuit. Negligent hiring is a common-law claim asserting that the employer knew or should have known that an employee posed a risk. It's the reason why HR professionals should screen candidates carefully before making job offers and conduct background checks for key positions.

Understand Constraints - Be Thoughtful - Limit Searches - Respond Appropriately - See the Big Picture - Invest in Change shrm.org

Despite past denials, LAPD used facial recognition 30,000 times in last decade
The Los Angeles Police Department has used facial recognition software nearly 30,000 times since 2009, with hundreds of officers running images of suspects from surveillance cameras and other sources against a massive database of mug shots taken by law enforcement.

Josh Rubenstein, an LAPD spokesman, said he could not determine how many leads from the system have developed into arrests, but that the technology has helped identify suspects in gang crimes where witnesses were too fearful to come forward and in crimes where no witnesses existed.

The system identifies "key contour facial features," but is "only used to develop investigative leads, not to solely identify a suspect in a crime," Rubenstein said. "No individuals are arrested by the LAPD based solely on facial recognition results."

The technology used in Los Angeles is from DataWorks Plus, a South Carolina company that expanded into facial recognition from mugshot services.

According to Rubenstein, the county system allows police investigators to submit images from witnesses, crime scenes, surveillance cameras or other sources and compare them against a database of nearly 9 million mug shots. latimes.com

Brooklyn Meat Distributor Pleads Guilty to Selling Miss-Labeled Meat
For 4 Years to Retailers
Between September 2011 and October 2014, the defendants were co-owners of A. Stein Meat Products, Inc., a wholesale meat processing and distribution business located in Brooklyn. During this period, the defendants purchased beef products that had been graded "Choice" quality by graders at the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service and directed their employees to carve off the "Choice" markings and re-stamp them as "Prime," using counterfeit stamps. The meat was then sold at inflated prices to customers in the New York City metropolitan area.

When sentenced, each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison and criminal forfeiture of $250,000. justice.gov

Gov. Cuomo may use National Guard to staff polling locations on Election Day
After placing the Guard "on standby" but not sending them in as riots raged in New York City this past summer, Cuomo said Monday that he might pull the trigger and actually deploy troops to ensure voters can cast in-person ballots in the Nov. 3 presidential election. nypost.com

Holiday sales to rise 1.0% to 2.6% but over a longer period than in years past

7-Eleven to Hire 20,000

Ralph Lauren to cut workforce by 15%

Bed Bath & Beyond to Close Another 63 Stores On Top of the 200 Announced in July

Running List of Stores Closed on Thanksgiving Day 2020