'Sharing Information, Working Investigations'
ORC Task Force Training & Networking Event

Cook County State's Attorney Regional Organized Crime Task Force Draws More Than 120 Attendees to Training & Networking Event
CCROC, the Cook County State's Attorney Regional Organized Crime Task Force (www.ccroc.org), recently hosted their bi-monthly training & networking event on February 28th. The event drew more than 120 attendees representing local, state, and federal law enforcement as well as numerous retailers, banks, insurers, logistics companies and manufacturers. The bi-monthly event was hosted at CCROC’s dedicated 5,000 sf office and the meeting was kicked off by Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke. CCROC is excited to be working with the leadership of the new Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke. In just two months it is reported that retail theft felony charges are up 140% in Cook County. The energy is palpable as there are numerous partnerships and active joint investigations.

CCROC launched the year off with a charity event for the Boys and Girls Club of Chicago, gifting over 130 children with personalized gifts, winter wear, and school supplies - handed to them by law enforcement from the Chicago PD and CCROC members. The CCROC annual conference is set for August 12th and 13th in Glen Ellyn, IL. More than 600 professionals from around the country will attend this annual conference, where there will be over 35 speakers and five training tracks. The conference sells out every year so register soon here!

Any questions please contact David.Williams@CookCountySAO.org or Ed.Henkel@ccroc.org.

Robbery Down 25% - Grand Larceny Down 17% - Burglary Down 15%
NYPD Announces Crime Continues to Decline in February 2025, Shatters 30-Year Shooting Record

- Major crime down 14.5% across five boroughs for the third month in a row

- Subway crime down 15% and double-digit declines in murder, robbery, burglary, grand larceny, and auto theft

Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch announced today that New York City continued to experience an overall decline in major crime, including on the subways, and broke a 30-year record for the fewest number of shooting incidents in the first two months of the year. In February 2025, there were 1,328 fewer major crime incidents reported – a 14.5% decrease compared to the same period in 2024 (7,821 vs. 9,149).  February’s results mark the third consecutive month of double-digit decreases in crime, following a 15.5% decrease in crime in December 2024 and 16.8% decrease in crime in January 2025.

Continuing this strong three-month trend, all five boroughs experienced reductions in six of the seven major crime categories. Robbery saw the most significant decline, down 25.2% (933 vs. 1,248). Grand larceny dropped by 17% (3,081 vs. 3,712), while auto theft decreased by 12.7% (839 vs. 961). Felony assault and burglary also fell, by 6% and 14.7%, respectively.

These results were driven by the use of zone-based policing, or the deployment of officers to hot-spot locations experiencing spikes in crime, and the three-part subway safety plan that was implemented in January. Officers continue to conduct foot patrols in high-crime areas, both above ground and throughout the city’s vast transit system. In February, uniformed presence on subway platforms and cars resulted in increased enforcement efforts, which contributed to a 15.1% reduction in crime at train stations.

“In the first two months of 2025, New York City experienced the fewest number of shooting incidents in the past 30 years, and that, combined with the third consecutive month of double-digit declines in nearly every major crime category, prove that our comprehensive crime fighting strategies are working,” said NYPD Commissioner Tisch. “Whether on the streets or below ground on the subway, New Yorkers are seeing real results. We’re going to continue to make our city safer by listening to our communities, analyzing real-time data, and deploying our resources where they are needed most.”   nyc.gov
 
   RELATED: NYC crime rates drop significantly in February, NYPD data shows


UK's 'Opal' Fights Retail Crime
National coordination and partnership disrupting retail crime

Over 100 arrests made as a result of national investigations through Opal

The fight against retail crime continues building momentum thanks to strong partnerships between policing and retailers and recent Government announcements to strengthen legislation.

The national team collating and coordinating intelligence from police forces and retailers across the country has now effected over 100 arrests (108) of individuals involved in organised retail crime, collectively responsible for over £5.2m in losses to businesses.

The team within Opal (policing’s national intelligence unit for serious organised acquisitive crime) has been operational since 1 May 2024 and is funded by the Pegasus Partnership, a joint initiative between the Home Office, policing and retailers and facilitated by PCC Katy Bourne. It coordinates the sharing of intelligence to gain a clearer picture of those who are behind the increase in retail crime.

Opal’s team receives referrals from police forces and retailers and builds intelligence packages, mapping out offending across the country and providing investigative support to bring the highest harm offenders to justice. A package will then be collated and shared with the most appropriate police force to progress the investigation and take action against offenders.

In addition, new legislation announced in the Crime and Policing Bill makes assault of a retail worker a standalone offence and alongside a change to ensure all offences of shop theft are tried as ‘general theft’, removing the perceived immunity granted to shop theft of goods to the value of £200 or less. news.npcc.police.uk


Police data showing increasing crime trends in Halifax

Hate crimes in major US cities dipped in 2024. But the data doesn't tell the whole story.
 

A Blueprint for Retail Cyber Resilience
Evolving Tactics for Today’s Digital World
In the highly competitive retail market, businesses are leveraging technology to strengthen brand loyalty and enhance consumer experiences in ways that only science fiction writers could have imagined 40 years ago. Storefronts are eliminating the checkout process, augmented reality is reducing return rates and virtual marketplaces are offering new consumer experiences. But as retailers digitize operations to differentiate customer experiences, they also face a growing wave of cyber threats targeting sensitive customer data and critical business systems.

Findings from Trustwave’s Retail Sector Risk Radar Report highlight the sophistication of today’s malware and phishing tactics, as well as the risks posed by supply chain vulnerabilities. Achieving revenue growth and ensuring strong defenses require decisive decision-making, but history has shown that this can also inadvertently expose businesses to additional risks. To protect themselves, businesses must take proactive measures to secure their operations in an increasingly hostile digital landscape.

Malware Threats Exploit Everyday Retail Tools

Recent malware attacks targeting retail platforms are becoming more sophisticated and disruptive, exploiting tools and software that retailers depend on daily. In April 2024, Ticketmaster suffered a substantial data breach for which the hacking group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility. The attack exfiltrated data from more than 500 million customers, including phone numbers, email addresses, credit card numbers and event tickets.

The attacks only continued — in July, Neiman Marcus Group was among several companies affected by attacks targeting users of the cloud-based data storage platform Snowflake. While attackers target retailers across verticals, food- and event-oriented retail have been highly targeted. At the end of the day, threat actors follow the money and utilize the lowest-effort channels to reach it.

As such, cybercriminals are finding insidious ways to embed malicious code into widely used platforms like Facebook Business accounts and Microsoft Teams, which are essential for customer communications, marketing and operational efficiency. Ransomware groups like Play and LockBit have established themselves as significant threats, with Trustwave’s research revealing that ransomware attacks targeting U.S. retailers accounted for 62% of such incidents globally.

These groups often infiltrate endpoint devices, including point-of-sale (POS) systems, employee laptops and mobile devices used for customer service. By adapting methods to target the critical tools retail teams rely on most, threat actors are able to disrupt business operations and demand payment, typically in hard-to-trace cryptocurrencies.

Social Engineering: The Human Target | Securing the Supply Chain Against Vulnerabilities | Redefining the Customer Experience Through Trust, Security: retailtouchpoints.com
 

Technology is Making it Easier for Cyber Attackers
Online crime-as-a-service skyrockets with 24,000 users selling attack tools
The growth of AI-based technology has introduced new challenges, making remote identity verification systems more vulnerable to attacks, according to iProov. Innovative and easily accessible tools have allowed threat actors to become more sophisticated overnight, powering an increasing number of threat vectors due to new methodologies.

While much attention has focused on consumer identity fraud, the most significant and costly attacks of 2024 targeted workforce remote identity verification systems. This shift toward corporate targets reveals a concerning trend: threat actors are exploiting remote work processes and corporate communication channels for maximum impact.

By targeting remote hiring processes, virtual workplace communications, and executive video conferences, attackers are achieving significantly higher payouts than traditional consumer fraud. This shift from individual to organizational targets exposes a dangerous gap in workforce identity verification—one that current corporate security frameworks are struggling to address.

Key remote identity verification systems attack trends

Native camera attacks evolved from their experimental phase in 2023 to become a major threat in 2024, increasing by 2665% due partly to mainstream app store infiltration. Most concerningly, these attacks don’t require rooted or jailbroken devices, making them accessible to threat actors without advanced technical skills.

Face swap attacks surged 300% compared to 2023, with threat actors shifting focus to systems using liveness detection protocols. Threat actors leverage shared intelligence to exploit vulnerable systems using a variety of face swap tools.

An additional 31 online threat actor groups were identified in 2024, the largest of which has 6,400 users. The online crime-as-a-service ecosystem grew, with nearly 24,000 users now selling attack technologies. Image-to-video conversion emerged as a new synthetic identity attack vector with a simple, two-step process that could impact many liveness detection solutions already in the market.  helpnetsecurity.com


Cybercriminals Use QR Codes to Carry Out Scams
How QR code attacks work and how to protect yourself
QR codes have become an integral part of our everyday life due to their simplicity. While they’ve been around for many years, their use exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, when businesses turned to them for contactless menus, payments, and check-ins.

While QR codes are convenient, they also present significant risks. In the past few years, cybercriminals have increasingly turned to these codes as a tool to carry out scams. helpnetsecurity.com


Massive Iran-linked botnet launches DDoS attacks against telecom, gaming platforms

Microsoft-signed driver used in ransomware attacks

Contra Costa County, CA: $100K Smash-and-Grabbers Loot Store While Pepper-Spraying Staff and Customers
The burglary reportedly happened around 11 am Saturday at Hilton House Consign & Design in downtown Orinda. Five men reportedly entered the store and pepper-sprayed employees and customers, then smashed display cases with hammers to steal much of the shop’s stock of jewelry. “They’re not gentlemen; they weren’t gentlemen that bombed in and our staff was crying and it was very very upsetting to us in our small community, this just doesn’t happen here,” Hilton House owner Cyndi Hilton Girgis told KRON4, adding that the burglars even pepper-sprayed an elderly woman. “She didn’t have to go to the hospital, which I thought because she was, an older lady and the customers were fine. I had one of the staff go home.” Hilton Girgis estimates the thieves took $100,000 in jewelry, as well as doing $20,000 in damage to the store. The thieves were almost caught, but not quite. An employee did hit a panic button in the back of the store to alert police, but the officers just barely missed them.  sfist.com


San Francisco, CA: Man charged with stealing $16K of goods from Noe Valley Walgreens
A Pittsburg man was hit with several charges in connection to thefts at a San Francisco Walgreens, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office announced. Marcos Smith-Pequeno, 28, allegedly stole more than $4,000 worth of merchandise from the Walgreens at 1333 Castro St. before returning the same day and stealing more merchandise worth $12,000. Smith-Pequeno had accomplices in both thefts, DA Brooke Jenkins said. Six other suspects joined him for the first robbery and three others were there for the second one.  kron4.com


Lexington, SC: Police in South Carolina say woman shoplifted more than $1,500 in merchandise from Ulta Beauty

Baton Rouge, LA: Man asks why he's charged with 5 felonies, says he was 'only stealing from 1 store'