The Fight Against ORC Can Be Won in the Parking Lot
Don't forget parking lots when preventing theft

By Matt Kelley, Head of Retail at LiveView Technologies

Organized retail crime (ORC) has entered a new era that threatens retailers' best attempts to keep their employees safe and customers coming back.

Retail security measures can no longer depend on person-to-person defensive shrink strategies. To combat this ever-increasing challenge, retailers must get proactive across all five zones of retail influence. Zone 4 in particular, the parking lot and surrounding areas, is especially important for stopping ORC.

Understanding the five zones of retail influence

The five zones, as defined by the Loss Prevention Research Council, spotlight concentric zones that offenders must cross to steal merchandise. Security professionals should develop proactive plays within each zone to deter criminals instead of reactive attempts to stop a crime already in progress.

The five zones are:

• Zone 1: Anything touching a target (product, person, or other assets) in its precise location. Zone 1 includes product packaging and the shelving or fixture that a product is displayed on.

• Zone 2: Where targets are located inside the store, such as fitting rooms, counters dedicated to specific merchandise (like makeup or high-tech devices) and shopping aisles.

• Zone 3: Inside the store and all entrances.

• Zone 4: The parking lot and its perimeter, including entrances, landscaping, surrounding streets and store curtilage.

• Zone 5: The store's local community as well as its web presence, online platforms and social channels.

All risk assessments, asset protection strategies and security technologies must empower leaders to investigate threats, interrogate hypotheses and enact processes to address the challenges unique to each zone.

Defend zone 4 to stop ORC

By implementing proactive strategies in zone 4, retailers have an unmatched opportunity to stop ORC offenders. A parking lot is where perpetrators must enter and leave, and it's where the getaway car often waits. Using the right mix of tools and strategies in this zone can deter bad actors or collect information that helps local authorities catch criminals if an incident occurs.

Effective deterrence begins when a potential threat enters the perimeter. This is when all security operations in place must demonstrate the impression of control and add friction to the would-be criminal's experience.  securitymagazine.com


Leaders on the Front Lines of the Retail Theft Fight
NJ food industry recognizes retail, law enforcement leaders for efforts to combat retail theft
New Jersey's food industry recently recognized grocery leaders and law enforcement professionals for their ongoing efforts to strengthen retail loss prevention. Presented by the New Jersey Food Council during the 2023 Mid-Atlantic Loss Prevention Conference and Expo Nov. 2, professional awards were presented to:

Mike Murphy, Retail Business Services, an Ahold Delhaize company

Murphy is the investigations specialist assigned to Stop and Shop & Hannaford locations in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. He has worked in the asset protection field for more than 20 years. Murphy assists with the identification of suspects and partners with other retailers to identify and dismantle organized retail crime groups impacting the Ahold Delhaize brands.

Dawn Roller, Brown's ShopRite Super Stores

Roller is a longtime champion of the loss prevention world. She has more than 28 years of experience in loss prevention and management positions. As director of loss prevention at Brown's ShopRite Super Stores, she has experience in loss prevention work for the retail and food retail industries and uses her experience as a guiding light.

Amanda Hobert, regional investigations manager, Lowes

Hobert is a certified forensic interviewer with more than 15 years of experience in the loss prevention industry. Hobert specializes in organized retail crime and fraud and serves as a board member and president of Metro Organized Retail Crime Alliance (METRORCA), which serves New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Two law enforcement professionals,  Hamilton Police Det. Daniel Inman and Bergen County Sheriff Anthony Cureton, whose work serves as a blueprint for effective public/private partnerships and the building of relationships with the retail community, were also honored with the 2023 Retail Law Enforcement Achievement Award.

"With an increase in not only theft but also in violent incidents, this is a critical time to share insight and collaborate in order to protect our communities and prevent loss," NJFC President and CEO Linda Doherty said in a statement.  njbiz.com

   RELATED: Hamilton Det. Inman Honored for Solving Shoplifting, ORC Cases


Overview of California's Theft Laws
Can California workers chase shoplifters? Examining State Theft Laws

What laws does California have on retail theft?

Let's address the main ones, according to the attorney general's office:

Senate Bill 301: This passed in 2022 and provides threshold requirements for marketplaces to gather and store information on high volume, third party sellers. It also requires online marketplaces to suspect future sales of those sellers who don't comply with the reporting requirements.

Assembly Bill 1700: This bill, also passed in 2022, creates an online reporting tool managed by the attorney general's office to give you a way to report organized retail theft. Here's the link. The form asks for as much information as you can provide, such as the suspect's name and address, as well as the name and address of the witness.

Proposition 47: Voters approved this in 2014. It reclassified certain nonviolent crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies, including shoplifting.

What other steps are being taken? Attorney General Rob Bonta and the California Department of Justice have also established the Organized Retail Criminal Enterprises program through two new investigative teams in the Bureau of Investigation's White Collar Crimes Unit.

Does California have a no-chase policy?

No. An earlier version of Senate Bill 553: Workplace Violence Prevention would have prohibited employers from requiring non-security personnel to confront suspected shoplifters. That language was taken out of the legislation.

The bill that passed required employers to create effective workplace violence prevention plans and authorizes a collective bargaining representative of a worker who suffered unlawful violence to get a temporary restraining order. yahoo.com


'No Waiting, No Stealing': Stopping Theft Without Causing Customer Friction?
Bay Area innovator stops shoplifting, gives shoppers power to open locked shelves

New technology coming to stores could stop theft and ease customer access.

"What's happening today isn't solving the problem," said David Ashforth. Ashforth is no ordinary shopper. In Sebastopol, he heads a company called Digital Media Vending International. Its machines are everywhere -- in places like hotels and airports -- stocked with electronics or toiletries that maybe you forgot to pack.

"I thought, 'Huh. My machine could fit right here and then I wouldn't have to find a manager with a key anymore," Ashforth said. His company is investing new shelving for stores. Basically: huge, modular vending machines that can replace entire aisles.

Ashforth's team calls this an "automated retailer." Merchandise is stocked safely behind glass-- to stop thieves. At the same time, honest shoppers get self-service access that's faster than waiting for a manager.

"The machine will deliver their products to them in real-time, instantly," he said. No waiting, no stealing.

DMVI can't share names. But it did tell us there are stores -- whose names you and I would recognize -- that are interested in buying these machines to shut down shoplifting.

"There's about 44 that we're speaking to right now," said Ashforth with DMVI. nbcbayarea.com


After Slamming Target & Walgreens Theft Response, Sheriff Praises Safeway
Sacramento County Sheriff praises Safeway's response to retail theft
Kudos were given to Safeway and the California Grocery Association from Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper for "continuing to be active partners in the fight against retail theft."

The praise on social media comes a few days after the sheriff made a series of posts about his frustrations with Target, Walgreens, and the California Retail Association for his perceived lack of cooperation in combatting shoplifting.

"Some large retailers, like Safeway and the CGA, are continuing to help in the fight to keep their communities and customers safe," Cooper said on X. "It is amazing to see what can happen when businesses work hand in hand with law enforcement."

Cooper reported that Safeway's organized retail theft management team recently reached out to the sheriff's property crimes detectives about ongoing theft issues at some of their Sacramento store locations.

"Detectives set up a shoplifting blitz operation, where Safeway loss prevention officers identified theft suspects who were then taken into custody by detectives and issued misdemeanor citations," Cooper said.

He added, "None of the suspects were homeless and indicated they simply didn't think the theft was a big deal and that other people are stealing all of the time." fox40.com
 

California's ORC Funds Continue to be Allocated
Ventura County wins $18M to tackle organized retail thefts
Ventura County has won almost $18 million in state grants to stop organized retail thefts, part of California's initiative to end the sometimes brazen attacks.

Criminal enterprises target Ventura County because the area offers large retail shopping centers, auto malls and other appealing establishments, plus the convenience of the geographic location and major state highways, his letter says.

Fryhoff endorsed a collaborative approach to prevent crime, investigate organized retail theft and share data regionally to identify and prosecute these groups. All local police agencies along with the District Attorney's Office and the county's probation agency are involved in the effort, officials said.

Supervisors agreed to add 11 temporary positions in the Sheriff's Office for the three-year, grant-funded program. Included are sworn law enforcement and civilian staff.

The Sheriff's Office won $15.65 million to prevent and investigate the crimes while the District Attorney's Office was awarded a grant of a little over $2 million to prosecute suspects. vcstar.com


D.C. Declares Public Emergency Over Crime & Drugs
Bowser declares public emergencies over spike in youth crime, opioid overdoses
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has declared a public emergency over two issues facing the nation's capital. The first is a dramatic spike in juvenile crime and the second addresses the evolving opioid crisis. Bowser said the emergency declaration is designed to help the government spend money quicker to secure resources needed to address both problems. wtop.com


House ORC Bill Gets More Cosponsors
H.R.895 - Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2023
Four new co-sponsors signed onto the legislation (3 Republicans and 1 Democrat), bringing the total to 82 cosponsors (42 Democrats, 40 Republicans). It's picking up activity. Is your representative supporting it?


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'No Receipt, No Return' Policies Are Major Missteps for Retailers

The Reasons Behind 'No Receipt, No Return'

Across the retail industry, returns are on the rise. The recent Returns as an Engagement Strategy report published by Appriss Retail and Incisiv found that returns increased by 78% since 2020. And with that, means a growing number of fraudulent returns too. In fact, NRF and Appriss Retail found that 10% of retail returns are fraudulent, costing the industry upwards of $85 billion a year.

These findings highlight the importance of minimizing returns, especially fraudulent ones. To crack down on these profit-threatening trends, retailers are taking drastic measures including instituting strict new policies like "no receipt, no return."

The Negative Impact of Strict Policies

Whether retailers are limiting returns windows or requiring receipts, strict return policies are detrimental to a retailer's reputation and can discourage shoppers from making a purchase.

Retailers must find an alternative for restrictive policies like "no receipt, no return." Fortunately, artificial intelligence offers a path forward.

The Benefits of Fine Tunable AI Models

Retailers should implement AI-based return models that mitigate loss while simultaneously bolstering the shopping experience for profitable shoppers. Once integrated, the AI engine can begin analyzing a variety of data for each shopper. The considerations include the frequency of returns, preferred returns channels, average basket sizes, and any history of fraud or abuse. Then, the engine will recommend in real time a personalized return recommendation for each shopper. risnews.com


OSHA Cracking Down on Warehouse Companies - 'Especially Amazon'
Government figures show more people getting sick or hurt at work
As the number of workers at in-person job sites rose in 2022, so too did the number of workers getting hurt or sick on the job. New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics out Wednesday shows that 2.8 million workplace injuries and illnesses were voluntarily reported by employers last year, though that number is likely an undercount.

Among the injuries that are counted, many are in warehousing, per Debbie Berkowitz, a fellow at Georgetown and former OSHA chief of staff. Those jobs often require a lot of repetitive motions that can lead to injuries "to your back, to your upper extremities, your wrist and your shoulder and your elbow," she said.

OSHA has begun to crack down on warehousing companies - especially Amazon - this year, citing the company for violations at least six times. And starting in March, the agency will require many firms to report more injury information.

"They used to just have to submit their summary of how many injuries and illnesses they had, and now they'll have to submit their detailed records," Berkowitz said.

That, she added, could expose companies who've been underreporting. marketplace.org


The Global Self-Checkout Reckoning
A UK supermarket chain is firing its self-checkout stations and bringing back real people as cashiers

Even in the US, major retailers like Walmart and Costco are revising self-checkout strategies.

Booths, a high-end supermarket chain in the UK, is swapping out its self-checkout stations with manned cashiers in the majority of its stores. The chain will retain self-checkout stations in only two out of its 28 stores, according to the BBC.

The decision comes after customers have repeatedly complained about the chain's self-scan machines being slow, unreliable, and impersonal, Nigel Murray, managing director for Booths, told BBC Radio Lancashire.

Booths is believed to be the first UK supermarket chain that's doing away with self-checkout stations, according to the BBC. But it's one among a growing number of retailers like Walmart and Costco that are revising their self-checkout strategies.

But for some US retailers, issues like theft have driven the self-checkout reckoning. businessinsider.com


Shoppers Pulling Back Before Holiday Spending Surge?
Consumer spending fell in October, according to new CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor tracking card transactions

October retail sales, excluding autos and gas, fell by 0.08%, according to the new CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor.

The consumer took a spending break ahead of the holiday season, with October retail sales, excluding autos and gas, falling by 0.08%, and core retail, which also removes restaurants, declining by 0.03%, according to the new CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor.

The data differs from the Census Bureau's retail sales report as it is the result of actual consumer purchases, while the Census relies on survey data. The government data is frequently revised as additional survey data becomes available. The CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor is not revised as it's calculated from actual transactions during the month. It is, however, seasonally adjusted, using the same program employed by Census. cnbc.com


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Responsible Use of AI in Retail
NRF Releases Retail Principles for Artificial Intelligence
WASHINGTON - The National Retail Federation today released its Principles for the Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Retail Sector to support the industry's artificial intelligence (AI) governance and strategic planning. Developed through its Center for Digital Risk & Innovation, the principles encourage appropriate and effective governance of AI, promote consumer trust, and facilitate ongoing innovation and beneficial use of AI technologies.

"Retailers use AI to better serve their customers, improve the shopping experience and increase the efficiency of their operations," NRF Vice President of Retail Technology & Cybersecurity and Executive Director of the NRF Center for Digital Risk & Innovation Christian Beckner said. "As retailers of all sizes continue to expand their AI capabilities, these general principles for the use of AI are increasingly critical to the industry."

The principles fall into four high-level categories:

1. Governance and Risk Management: Retailers should develop strong internal governance of AI tools and capabilities as a foundational basis for managing risks and ensuring that AI delivers expected benefits.

2. Customer Engagement and Trust: Retailers should be transparent about their uses of AI that have a legal or similarly significant effect on a customer establish safeguards to prevent unlawful discrimination against protected classes of individuals, and align their governance of consumer-facing AI applications with existing internal privacy, cybersecurity and other data governance policies.

3. Workforce Applications and Use: Retailers should engage in ongoing oversight and review of AI applications that may directly impact employees or that are used by the workforce to support business needs.

4. Business Partner Accountability: Retailers should establish clear guidelines and expectations for business partners that are providing AI tools, data sets and services.

The NRF Center for Digital Risk & Innovation Center serves as the focal point for NRF's engagement on technology issues that have significant policy and risk management implications for the global retail industry. The Center plans to develop reports and additional guidelines in the coming months that provide additional context and assist retailers with using these principles.

As the leading authority and voice for the retail industry, NRF engages with retail technology leaders to deliver insights on technology trends and challenges and facilitate collaboration across the sector.

More information about the NRF Center for Digital Risk & Innovation is available here. nrf.com


Preparing for Inevitable Cyberattacks
'Shields Ready' Critical Infrastructure Initiative Addresses Inevitable Cyberattacks

A cyberattack is coming, disasters are certain, and the US government wants critical infrastructure firms ready to handle any disruption. Welcome to Shields Ready.

The US government has issued a series of prescriptions for preparing critical infrastructure operators for disasters, physical attacks, and cyberattacks, with an emphasis on the ability to recover from disruptions in the future.

The initiative, dubbed "Shields Ready," aims to convince 16 identified critical infrastructure sectors to invest in hardening their systems and services against any disruption, no matter the source. The effort, spearheaded by both the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), assumes that attacks and disasters will happen and calls on critical infrastructure operators to prepare to keep services running.

The interconnectedness of the 16 critical infrastructure sectors, and the supply chain on which they rely, means preparedness is critical, said Jen Easterly, director of CISA.

The dangers to critical infrastructure have increased in recent years, with disruptions caused by severe disasters - such as the wildfires in California and the coronavirus pandemic - and cyberattacks. In the past five years, for example, pharmaceutical firm Merck suffered a major outage because of the NotPetya cyberattack in 2017, while this year competitor Pfizer suffered a tornado strike on a major warehouse that caused disruptions to the supply of certain drugs. And famously, in May 2021, US pipeline operator Colonial Pipeline suffered a ransomware attack, shutting down its services for a week, which led to gas shortages throughout the southeast United States.  darkreading.com


Has the Global Ransomware Effort Stalled?
Success eludes the International Counter Ransomware Initiative
A swing and a miss by the 50 member countries of the International Counter Ransomware Initiative (CRI), headlined by the US, who have confirmed a commitment to collectively address ransomware.

Ransomware, as predicted, is growing at tremendous rates and focusing on critical infrastructure sectors that can impact vast numbers of citizens. It is such a blight that countries are banding together to see what can be done.

Everybody is looking towards the United States for leadership, yet the only tangible actions coming from the CRI are responsive in nature. The most powerful direction to address ransomware is little more than a feeble suggestion.

The CRI has recently trumpeted a collective plan to fight ransomware and outlined several pillars to combat these cyber-attacks. The actions are focused primarily on how best to react once an attack occurs, by reinforcing communication and enforcing collaboration, in attempts to respond to ongoing incidents. helpnetsecurity.com


ACSC and CISA Release Business Continuity in a Box
Today, the Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre (ASD's ACSC) and CISA released Business Continuity in a Box. Business Continuity in a Box, developed by ACSC with contributions from CISA, assists organizations with swiftly and securely standing up critical business functions during or following a cyber incident.

Comprised of two core components-Continuity of Communications and Continuity of Applications-Business Continuity in a Box is designed for situations where the availability or integrity of an organization's data and/or systems has been compromised. The core components focus on keeping communications flowing during an incident and establishing interim business-critical applications. cisa.gov


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