JCP's AP Team Driving Results
J.C. Penney CEO - Shrink Improvement Helped Drive Profit Last Two Quarters

Each of the last two quarters J.C. Penney's CEO pointed out the 'three drivers of meaningful improvement' were inventory management, improved shrink results, and lower permanent markdowns.

While they continue to work on top line sales, their focus has also been on 'reconstructing the business, through a holistic approach across all the key tenets of strategic, purposeful and effective retailing.' And the Asset Protection team has played a key role in helping drive improvement as stated in each of the last two quarterly reports. Well done, JCP AP!

2nd Quarter - 3rd Quarter
 

Kroger Ranked Top For Gun-Safety Out of 29 Retailers

29 stores including Walmart & Nike were graded on their gun-safety policies - and more than half of them failed

A coalition of gun control advocacy groups led by Guns Down America published a gun safety scorecard for national retailers. The list assigns a number and grade letter to 29 businesses, including Walmart, Trader Joe's, Kroger, and Chick-fil-A , and ranks each company according to three categories.

Retailers can earn or lose points based on their in-store gun policies, donations made to the National Rifle Association, and whether the company or its CEO has ever publicly demanded action on gun control.

Walmart, Kroger, and Old Navy were the only companies to receive an A grade. Sixteen companies, including McDonald's and Home Depot, received a failing grade.

Out of the 29 stores on the list, 25 of them had instances of gun violence in their stores, according to Guns Down America.

What's gained and lost when retailers drop firearms sales
Two of the nation's largest retailers in the category, Dick's Sporting Goods and Walmart, reduced the retail availability of guns this year when they began to limit or eliminate firearms and ammunitions from their retail floors ahead of the holiday shopping season. The end result may be that the impact of Walmart's and Dick's firearms retailing decisions on both their holiday sales and the sales of rival stores such as Cabela's may be negligible. But that doesn't mean it's not instructional. retaildive.com

Michael Davis, Co-Founder and CEO, Appriss Inc.
Inducted into the Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame
The Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame (KEHOF), presented by Chase, honored four of the Commonwealth's most accomplished entrepreneurs at a ceremony last month. Among them was Michael Davis, Co-Founder and CEO, Appriss Inc.

KEHOF celebrates the stories of Kentucky's most successful entrepreneurs, with a mission to raise awareness around the impact entrepreneurship has made in the Commonwealth and to encourage others to pursue similar ambitious endeavors. The Class of 2019 joins over 40 entrepreneurs who have been inducted since 2010.

"Entrepreneurs are key drivers of our state's economy and we're thrilled to shine a light on some of Kentucky's most successful business leaders," said Paul Costel, Region Manager for JPMorgan Chase in Kentucky. "This year's honorees have had a tremendous impact on our community and we look forward to the mark they'll leave on Kentucky for years to come." kychamberbottomline.com

About Michael Davis:
Michael Davis is a co-founder and CEO of Appriss, a Louisville based technology business focused on its mission of creating "Knowledge for Good." As a lifelong entrepreneur, Davis and his partner Yung Nguyen launched Appriss by inventing VINE, the nation's first automated victim notification service. Today, VINE is used throughout the country keeping millions of crime victims safe and informed. Over the last decade, Davis has led Appriss' transformation into an international data and analytics business focused on retail, safety, risk, and fraud across multiple markets. The company has grown by taking on complex national challenges faced by law enforcement, exposing fraud across multiple markets, and addressing the nation's challenges with drug diversion and addiction. Read more here
 

Updated Numbers:
Sensormatic Solutions releases its ShopperTrak 2019 Black Friday weekend shopper traffic recap

Data indicates winter storm and buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) trend impacted shopper traffic for Black Friday weekend and Cyber Monday

Johnson Controls today announced that Sensormatic Solutions, its leading global retail solutions portfolio, released a comprehensive ShopperTrak recap of shopper traffic during Black Friday weekend 2019, the period spanning Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, 2019, through Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019.

Sensormatic Solutions found that store traffic for the 2019 Black Friday weekend resulted in a 4.0% decrease compared to 2018. Store traffic on Saturday, Nov. 30, resulted in a 2.6% decrease and traffic on Sunday, Dec. 1, resulted in a 7.5% decrease.

On Saturday, traffic increased 0.9% in the Northeast and decreased in all other regions, including Midwest (-10.1%), South (-1.2%) and West (-2.6%). On Sunday, traffic was down significantly by 30% in the Northeast and only down nominally in other regions, including Midwest (-1.4%), South (-3.8%) and West (-1.7%).

Sensormatic Solutions also looked at the effect of Cyber Monday on brick-and-mortar retail traffic on Monday and found that this year's traffic increased 0.5%.

Sensormatic Solutions also analyzed traffic on Thanksgiving and Black Friday. After all data was tallied, the final results found that store traffic on Thanksgiving resulted in a 0.8% decrease and store traffic on Black Friday resulted in a 4.4% decrease. Data for the combined two-day period resulted in a 3.6% decline in traffic. A slight variation from what was originally reported, Black Friday remains the busiest holiday shopping day by a landslide.

More information on the 2019 top busiest shopping days here: Top Busiest Holiday Shopping Days.
businesswire.com
 

Uber Releases 1st Ever 2 Yr. Safety Report
5,981 Sexual Assaults & 9 Murders in 2 Years
Uber said it received 5,981 reports of sexual assault involving U.S. passengers or drivers during 2017 and 2018, underscoring the risk that has been a chief criticism of ride-hailing companies around the world.

In 2018 more than 3,000 sexual assaults were reported during its U.S. rides in 2018. Nonconsensual touching was the most prevalent type of sexual assault that occurred.

There were 515 incidents of rape or attempted rape in 2018.

The Thursday report, which the company hailed as the first of its kind. It is part of the company's effort to be more transparent after years of criticism over its safety record.

In 2017, the company counted 2,936 reported sexual assaults - including 229 rapes - during 1 billion U.S. trips. Uber bases its numbers on reports from riders and drivers, meaning the actual numbers could be much higher. Sexual assaults commonly go unreported.

Uber and Lyft have both formed partnerships with sexual assault prevention networks and other safety groups, and have touted their background check policies for drivers. But many say they haven't gone far enough to protect passengers and drivers, who are contract workers for the companies.

Bomberger, a lawyer representing more than 100 victims of sexual assault in lawsuits against Uber and Lyft, said he believes 80% to 90% of the assaults in the Uber report could have been prevented by measures such as cameras in the cars recording rides and the companies reporting every assault they learn of to the police.

The company also said Uber rides were involved in nine murders during 2018, and 10 during 2017. Uber noted that the vast majority - 99.9% - of its rides had no reported safety issues.

Uber said in its report that during 2017 and 2018, more than a million prospective drivers didn't make it through Uber's screening process. wsj.com

Funding Opportunity For Local Level Efforts
Justice Department Announces More Than $376 Million In Awards To Promote Public Safety
The Department of Justice announced that it has awarded more than $376 million in grant funding to enhance state, local, and tribal law enforcement operations and to reinforce public safety efforts in jurisdictions across the United States.

The awards announced support an array of crime-fighting initiatives, including the quarter-billion-dollar Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grants Program, which funds public safety efforts in 929 state, local, and tribal jurisdictions. justice.gov

Editor's Note: Each year, we see local police departments funding ORC task forces and shoplifting blitzes with grant money from this fund. Let's hope we're successful in 2020 in working with the local PD's and obtaining funds as the ORC problem and the decriminalization trends continue to plague retailers nationwide. Get Your Local Teams Involved!

ISO Releases New Drone Safety Standard The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) announced a new set of international standards that covers the quality, safety, security and etiquette for the operation of commercial drones. ISO 21384-3, Unmanned aircraft systems - Part 3: Operational procedures, is the first International Standard for UAS and specifies internationally agreed and accepted requirements for safe commercial operations. securitymagazine.com

Surveillance cameras to reach 1 billion by 2021 as face biometrics for police, schools, retail roll out
Global numbers to grow almost 30% as higher image quality allows better facial recognition

The report, from industry researcher IHS Markit said the number of cameras used for surveillance would climb above 1 billion by the end of 2021. That would represent an almost 30% increase from the 770 million cameras today. China would continue to account for a little over half the total.

The number of surveillance cameras in the U.S. would grow to 85 million by 2021, from 70 million last year, as American schools, malls and offices seek to tighten security on their premises, IHS analyst Oliver Philippou said. biometricupdate.com wsj.com

U.S. Department of Labor Posts Retail-Focused Blog
"Tips for Protecting Workers' Safety and Pay This Holiday Season"
Young & New Retail Workers - Simple But Critical to Repeat Every Year
As an increase in hiring for the coming holiday season is upon us, there are a few things to remember to ensure that workers go home safe and healthy at the end of their shift and receive the wages that they've earned.

If you're not familiar with hiring seasonal workers, you should know that employment rules under federal labor law apply to all workers. The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Compliance Initiatives offers compliance assistance through Worker.gov and Employer.gov, which give an overview of rights and responsibilities regarding federal labor laws, as well as where to go for help. Here are some tips to keep in mind:

Safety and Health Tips

All workers - especially young employees and those new to the work environment - need to know they have the right to report safety concerns at any time, without retaliation. Safety takes teamwork, which means everyone needs to know the rules and feel comfortable speaking up. Employers should also know that certain hazardous jobs are prohibited for young workers.

Whether workers are stocking shelves, packing boxes, delivering products, or selling merchandise, it's important to give clear instructions for each task. New or seasonal workers may be unfamiliar with seemingly common tasks. OSHA can help employers and workers understand the requirements to provide hands-on training for using equipment, how to recognize hazards, and what to do in an emergency. dol.gov

Editor's Note: Field managers need to know this info. As UPS, reported last week in the Daily, was fined $47k for a simple safety issue and coerced the driver to bypass the regulation.

Iconix Brands Founder & Ex-CEO Neil Cole Charged in Inflating Company's Revenue & Earnings

Target to Open Small-Format Times Square Store - 10th in NY Area

RTW Retailwinds (New York & Co.) to Close 30 Stores

Los Angeles: Dodgers Fan Sues Team for Alleged Lack of Security Leading to Assault
 

TalkLP and The D&D Daily are partnering to bring the loss prevention industry relevant news and real talk!

"It makes total sense that the only podcast focused on providing professionals the unscripted side of LP would partner with the leading provider of the hottest news in the industry," said owner of TalkLP, Amber Bradley.

"The D&D Daily is constantly innovating to provide our audience the most newsworthy information and the TalkLP mission aligns perfectly by bringing real talk with industry veterans, analysts, and solution providers," said editor-in-chief Gus Downing of the D&D.

Stay tuned to the D&D and log on to TalkLP.com for the most relevant podcasts.

 

Last week's #1 article --

ORC Makes CNBC's 'On The Money' C.L.E.A.R. President Ben Dugan Interviewed Retailers aren't only bracing for shoppers this holiday season. They're also getting ready for sophisticated organized crime rings. How do stores stop the thieves and combat these criminals? Ben Dugan, President of the Coalition for Law Enforcement and Retail, explains how widespread the problem is and how it could be costing you. cnbc.com

In case you missed it --

Kroger Asset Protection Delivers 9 Consecutive Quarters of Shrink Improvement

Thanksgiving weekend draws nearly 190 million shoppers, spending up 16 percent

Former CEO Convicted of Fixing Prices For Canned Tuna, affecting hundreds of millions of dollars

The D&D Daily Announces 'Group LP Selfie' Holiday Pizza Party Winner:
Sheraton Puerto Rico Hotel & Casino Loss Prevention Team
 

eBay Hosts Another Successful Connect & Collaborate
Conference on April 10th

This year was our 4th event - and biggest yet - with ~175 participants (out of 200+ RSVPs) representing over 50 retailers, 14 law enforcement agencies, and 10 financial institutions - including the FBI, US Marshalls, Facebook, and the EVP for the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA).

Many key topics were discussed during the conference, including a prosecutor's view on packaging evidence, freight forwarding/reshipping schemes from USPIS, shadow economics, and case studies of known Organized Retail Crime cases.

2020 predictions: Rising complexity of managing digital risk
Digital risk management experts at RSA Security have released their predictions for 2020, detailing key cyber trends for the year ahead. With contributions from President, Rohit Ghai and CTO, Dr. Zulfikar Ramzan - the predictions offer a steer to companies on emerging threats and highlight that cybersecurity issues remain the number one digital risk for organizations undergoing digital transformation.

Some of the key trends that businesses need be aware of include:

● Cybersecurity: A matter of safety
● Expect to see a cyber incident at the edge next year
● Breach accountability
● The rise of cyber attacks in the crypto-sphere
● The API house of cards will start to tumble
● The identity crisis will worsen helpnetsecurity.com

7 in 10 Cameras Are Running Outdated Firmware
According to research conducted by Genetec, outdated camera firmware, and failing to change default passwords present some of the biggest weaknesses in cybersecurity defense and as the number of interconnected security devices keeps on growing, keeping pace with the latest updates can be tricky and very time-consuming.

Installing the latest firmware is not just about accessing exciting new features, warns the research: "It ensures the latest cybersecurity protection measures are implemented as soon as they become available, a crucial step in ensuring an organization's resilience against cyber-attacks."

"Our primary research data points to the fact that more than half of the cameras with out of date firmware (53.9 percent) contain known cybersecurity vulnerabilities. By extrapolating this to an average security network, nearly 4 out of every 10 cameras are vulnerable to a cyber-attack," said Mathieu Chevalier, Lead Security Architect at Genetec.

"Unfortunately, our research shows that the "set it and forget it" mentality remains prevalent putting an entire organization's security and people's privacy at risk. All it takes is one camera with obsolete firmware or a default password to create a foothold for an attacker to compromise the whole network," securitymagazine.com

Proposed GOP Federal Privacy Bill Would Supersede All Existing State Laws
After several moves by Democrats to introduce federal privacy legislation, Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi on Tuesday unveiled a draft consumer privacy bill, the United States Consumer Data Privacy Act of 2019, that would override various state laws on privacy, including the California Consumer Privacy Act.

Wicker claims that compared with California's law, which goes into effect in January, his proposed federal legislation has more detailed consumer protections, covers more companies and has more explicit requirements that companies collect the minimum amount of personal data needed for their purpose, according to Reuters.

Last week, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., introduced another federal privacy bill, the Consumer Online Privacy Rights Act, which intends to expand the rights of individuals when it comes to how their personal data is collected, shared and used. Unlike Wicker's bill, however, Cantwell's would not pre-empt state privacy laws, including CCPA. govinfosecurity.com

Two Members of the Romanian Cybercriminal Enterprise Bayrob Group Sentenced on 21 Counts Relating to Infecting Over 400,000 Victim Computers with Malware and Stealing At Least $4 Million
Bogdan Nicolescu, 37, and Radu Miclaus, 37, both from Bucharest, Romania, were sentenced to 20 years and 18 years, respectively, for their roles in a scheme to, among other things, infect more than 400,000 computers with malware and gain access to credit card and other information for later sale on dark market websites. justice.gov

The Top 12 Data Breaches of 2019

FBI recommends that you keep your IoT devices on a separate network

Domino's GPS Delivery Tracking Technology Expanding into Stores Across the U.S.