ORC: The Top New Crime Trend
7 New Kinds of Crime Showing Up In Major Cities Across the U.S.
In recent years, major cities across the United States have witnessed the emergence of new crime trends that challenge traditional law enforcement strategies. These evolving patterns reflect changes in technology, social behavior, and economic conditions. Here are seven notable crime trends that have surfaced:​

1. Organized Retail Crime

Organized retail crime (ORC) has become a significant issue, with coordinated groups executing large-scale thefts from retail stores. These crime rings often involve individuals who steal high volumes of merchandise, which is then resold through various channels, including online marketplaces. Major retailers like Nordstrom, Macy’s, and Old Navy have reported substantial losses due to ORC activities. In response, several states have enacted laws imposing harsher penalties for those involved in organized retail theft.

2. Rise of ‘Ghost Guns’

The proliferation of ‘ghost guns’—privately assembled firearms lacking serial numbers—has posed new challenges for law enforcement. These untraceable weapons have been increasingly linked to crimes across various cities. In response, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld regulations requiring serial numbers and background checks for ghost gun kits, aiming to curb their misuse.

3. Expansion of International Criminal Gangs

Transnational gangs, such as Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, have established a presence in various U.S. cities. These organizations engage in activities including drug trafficking, extortion, and violent crimes. Their expansion poses significant challenges for law enforcement agencies, as they often recruit members from within migrant communities and operate across multiple jurisdictions. ​

4. Car-Based Attacks in Public Spaces

Vehicle-ramming incidents have emerged as a method for individuals to inflict mass harm in crowded urban areas. A notable example occurred in New Orleans’ French Quarter, where a perpetrator drove into a crowd, resulting in multiple fatalities and injuries. These attacks exploit the accessibility of vehicles and the vulnerability of public gatherings, presenting complex challenges for urban safety planning.

5. Cyber-Enabled Financial Crimes | 6. Surge in Youth-Perpetrated Violent Crimes | 7. Increased Use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) | Addressing Emerging Crime Trends:  newsbreak.com


20M+ Americans Have Stolen via Self-Checkout
Is Self-Checkout Leading to Increased Retail Theft, and Why Do Some Americans Feel Justified in Stealing?
The prevalence of self-checkout seems apparent to anyone who’s set foot in a grocery store, drug store, or big-box retailer over the past few years. And alongside that rise in prevalence — a recent Capital One Shopping report suggested that almost 40% of all grocery store registers nationwide are self-checkout kiosks — comes an apparent opportunity for retail theft.

Apparently, more than a few Americans are taking that opportunity to steal.

That same Capital One Shopping report indicated that over 20 million Americans have stolen products via self-checkout (15% of those surveyed) and that a whopping 44% of these plan to re-offend. Only 33% of offenders said they have been caught in the act of self-checkout shoplifting.

And with self-checkout not going anywhere — early estimates peg the North American self-checkout market value at $2.28 billion, rising to $5 billion by 2030 — the matter becomes even more relevant for retailers, vendors, and the (honest or dishonest) customers they serve.

Which US States Have the Most Dishonest Self-Checkout Customers?

A JeffBet survey of Americans using self-checkout drilled down into several key data points, providing some insight as to which states and stores were most vulnerable to this style of retail theft.

As it turns out, the percentage of those shoppers who admitted to being dishonest at the self-checkout varied widely from state to state: respondents from Nebraska (55.1%), Illinois (52.94%), Oregon (52%), and Colorado (51.79%) were the most dishonest, while those hailing from Montana (20%), North Dakota (21.74%), New Jersey (25.49%), and North Carolina (also 25.49%) were the least.

Which Retailers Are Most Vulnerable to Self-Checkout Theft, and Which Dishonest Checkout Practices Are Most Common? retailwire.com


D.C. ORC Becoming Out of Control, Stores Demand Crackdown
Store owners call for more police crackdown of organized retail theft across DMV
As organized retail theft becomes more prevalent across the D.C.-metro region, a number of local store owners have had it.

“I don’t know any small business owner that is doing this to get rich – it’s all out of passion,” said Ifat Pridan, who owns Lili The First, a boutique in Georgetown. “But if you do something out of love, and you keep getting hit and hit and hit, eventually you say, ‘Okay, thank you and good night.’”

Pridan wants to see more of a police crackdown on this crime trend – and on thefts in general. “What I want to see is shop owners not giving up on their dreams to have a shop because of the crime, and eventually it will come down to that,” she said.

Marcisz told 7News that most organized retail theft operations target less expensive items from convenience stores that they can sell more easily without raising as many alarms as jewelry or expensive technology. Those who steal expensive items like jewelry and laptops tend to turn to the internet to try to sell them, Marcisz said, where they can be intercepted by police.

“Organized retail crime is something that flies under the radar, and [suspects] like it that way,” he said. “It's a multi-billion dollar drain on the United States economy every year.”

Marcisz said many stores are doing everything they can to help prevent this - from being more attentive of customers, to locking up more expensive items, to setting up security cameras. He said stores can even choose to put more expensive items locked up in a backroom of the store, where would-be thieves can’t get to them. wjla.com


Are Stores a Magnet for Gun Violence?
In Case You Missed It: Retail is the Most Common Location for Gun Violence, but There’s More to the Story
In 2024 there were 5,462 gun-related incidents in the U.S., and retail represented the single biggest vertical where these incidents took place (1,459), followed by K-12 schools (1,417). These are scary statistics that will likely (sadly) surprise no one.

However, a closer look at the data reveals a picture of gun violence in America, and at retail, that may in fact be surprising. While national news coverage tends to highlight the most horrific events, the reality of most gun violence incidents is much different. Active shooter events, where someone enters a space with the intent to kill, are relatively rare. The most common gun-related incident is a personal dispute that escalates, followed by a weapon being discovered but not used and shooting threats.

Despite the slightly less nefarious nature of these kinds of incidents, gun violence still accounted for 1,642 fatalities and 3,295 injuries in 2024; 551 of those fatalities happened at retail. This data comes from the ZeroEyes Gun Violence Research Center and is outlined in its 2024 ZeroEyes Gun Violence Report. ZeroEyes creates a human-verified AI gun detection software solution that integrates into existing digital security cameras to mitigate gun-related violence.

Much attention has been given to retail crime recently, focused primarily on shoplifting and theft, perhaps because that kind of crime is easier to thwart than an unpredictable, angry person with a gun. But there are things retailers can do to protect themselves and their customers from gun-related incidents, so Retail TouchPoints went down the rabbit hole with Acheson to explore the nuances of gun violence at retail and how it can be prevented. retailtouchpoints.com


Australian Retailers Fight Surging Knife Crime
Retail Employee Safety Council addresses knife crime
The safety of retail staff in relation to knife crime and its impact on the wider community was the focus of the third meeting of the Retail Employee Safety Council (RESC).

The meeting in Sydney yesterday (27 March) opened with members trialing the innovative virtual reality training offered by Woolworths to staff for handling abuse and violence in-store, as well as discussions around regulation, policy and training.

The RESC is supportive of the introduction of consistent legislation across all jurisdictions including prohibiting the sales of knives to minors (under 18) and the introduction of minimum packaging standards for the sale of knives to reduce ease of access within retail stores.

Increasing incidents ‘deeply concerning’

Australian Retailers Association (ARA) Chief Industry Affairs Officer Fleur Brown says that increasing incidents of customer aggression and violence across the nation are deeply concerning. “Sadly, one in 10 retail crimes were violent last year, meaning many staff have been left fearing for their safety at work which is simply unacceptable,” she says.

“We remain focused on advocating to the government to implement proven measures that improve the safety of retail workers. These include the introduction of workplace protection orders and strengthened police search powers to remove knives and dangerous weapons from the streets."  retailworldmagazine.com.au


New technology helps detectives bust organized shoplifting crew

Pittsburgh, PA: Gun safety advocates call for changes after shooting of 17-year-old
 

Ransomware Breach Hits Another Retailer
Retail giant Sam’s Club investigates Clop ransomware breach claims
Sam's Club, an American warehouse supermarket chain owned by U.S. retail giant Walmart, is investigating claims of a Clop ransomware breach. The Walmart division operates over 600 warehouse clubs with millions of members across the United States and Puerto Rico and almost 200 additional locations in Mexico and China.

Sam's Club has over 2.3 million employees and reported a total revenue of $84.3 billion for the fiscal year ending January 31, 2023.

"We are aware of reports regarding a potential security incident and are actively investigating the matter," a Sam's Club spokesperson told BleepingComputer. "Protecting the privacy and security of our members' information is a top priority at Sam's Club. We take these concerns seriously and will communicate further as appropriate."

While the company didn't provide additional details regarding this ongoing investigation, the Clop ransomware gang added a new Sam's Club entry to its dark web leak site on Friday.

The cybercrime group has yet to publish any proof of the breach, and so far, the threat actors only said on their leak site that the Arkansas wholesaler "doesn't care about its customers, it ignored their security."

While it's currently unknown how many companies were breached in the Cleo zero-day attacks, Cleo claims its products are used by over 4,000 organizations worldwide.

Arizona-based Western Alliance Bank, one of many companies added to Clop's leak site in January, notified nearly 22,000 customers last week that their personal information was stolen in October after exploiting a vulnerability in third-party secure file transfer software. bleepingcomputer.com


6 Million Records Stolen, 140K Customers Impacted
Cybersecurity firms brace for impact of potential Oracle Cloud breach

As evidence continues to pile up, security providers warn customers to secure networks.

Information security firms are taking measures to protect customers and their own networks as they wait for official guidance following claims of a massive attack against Oracle Cloud.

A threat actor last week claimed to have stolen 6 million data records, including user credentials, from Oracle Cloud, which could affect more than 140,000 customers. After initially releasing strong denials, Oracle has been silent this week, while security researchers have compiled evidence backing claims of an actual attack.

Security providers are assessing any potential impacts across their networks and advising customers to take precautionary measures until they are provided formal guidance from Oracle or official government agencies. cybersecuritydive.com


AI Policy 'Upended' by Trump
SEC should avoid ‘overly prescriptive’ AI rules, acting chair says

The comments follow actions taken by President Trump that have effectively upended the U.S. approach to AI policy under Biden, according to analysts.

Acting Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mark Uyeda on Thursday called for a softer agency approach to artificial intelligence regulation, reflecting a broader push in the Trump administration.

Speaking at an AI event hosted by the SEC in Washington, Uyeda said the agency should generally avoid “overly prescriptive” AI rules that can quickly become outdated and impede innovation.

“I have been concerned with some recent commission efforts that might effectively place unnecessary barriers on the use of new technology,” he said.

Uyeda’s comments follow actions taken by President Donald Trump that have effectively upended the U.S. approach to AI policy under his predecessor, Joe Biden, according to analysts. cybersecuritydive.com


Post-quantum cryptography and the future of online safety
 
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Fairfax County: Three Arrested in $190K Ulta Retail Theft Ring
The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) announced the arrest of three suspects linked to an organized retail theft operation targeting Ulta stores across multiple jurisdictions, including Montgomery County, with over $190,000 in reported losses. The arrests, made in Anne Arundel County on March 24, followed a months-long investigation involving multiple law enforcement agencies, leading to charges of armed robbery, grand larceny, and other offenses. Per FCPD: “After months of investigative work, three suspects have been arrested who are tied to an organized retail theft operation targeting luxury fragrances at Ulta stores across multiple jurisdictions. The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) worked alongside the Anne Arundel County Police Department, Prince William County Police Department, City of Fairfax Police Department, and Montgomery County Police Department to identify and dismantle this organized retail theft crew, which has been linked to thefts dating back to the summer of 2024. Their crime spree resulted in over $190,000 in losses, highlighting the importance of regional cooperation in combating organized retail crime.  mocoshow.com


Alameda County, CA: Man arrested in connection with comic book store burglary
A Livermore man was taken into custody by the county sheriff’s property crime unit on Thursday for allegedly burglarizing a popular comic book store in Castro Valley five days earlier. The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office reported finding nearly 200 boxes of Lego sets, comic books and action figures at the arrestee’s home in Livermore, including nearly $10,000 worth of Lego sets stolen from another person elsewhere in the Bay Area. The underlying crime took place at about 3 a.m. March 22, when two people broke into Crush Comics on Castro Valley Boulevard and stole merchandise, according to sheriff’s Sgt. Roberto Morales.   pleasantonweekly.com


Albuquerque, NM: Police search for suspects in $4000 Thrift store shoplifting

Ventura County, CA: Suspects Arrested in Ventura County for Theft of Over $2,000 from Nike Outlet Store at Camarillo Mall

San Mateo County, CA: 3 men with prior theft charges arrested for shoplifting at grocery store

Clarksville, GA: Police investigate $1000 felony shoplifting case at liquor store