Loss Prevention Has Never Been More Important
As Retail Theft Surges, LP Becomes a Cornerstone of Store Operations

By the D&D Daily staff

With retail crime on the rise across the United States, companies are investing more heavily in loss prevention as they grapple with the growing challenge of theft and its ripple effects on operations, profits, and employee safety.

Major retailers are reporting sharp increases in inventory shrink—industry terminology for merchandise lost to theft, fraud, or error. According to the National Retail Federation’s most recent data, organized retail crime and petty shoplifting contributed to over $112 billion in losses in 2024, up significantly from the previous year.

“This isn’t just about someone slipping a T-shirt into their bag,” said Angela Ramirez, a retail security consultant with over 15 years of experience. “We’re seeing coordinated groups clearing out shelves and reselling stolen goods online. It’s impacting bottom lines and pushing store safety to the forefront.”

Retailers like Target, Walgreens, and Home Depot have acknowledged the problem publicly. In several cases, stores have reduced hours, locked up more merchandise behind glass, or closed locations entirely due to safety concerns and theft.

As the stakes grow, the loss prevention industry—comprised of security personnel, surveillance systems, investigators, and analytics experts—is playing an increasingly vital role. Investments in technology like AI-powered cameras, RFID tracking, and predictive analytics are helping companies identify theft trends and prevent losses in real-time.

“Loss prevention isn’t just a backroom operation anymore. It’s part of strategic planning,” said Jamal Greene, Director of Asset Protection at a major U.S. retailer. “We’re working closely with law enforcement, tech vendors, and our frontline staff to stay ahead of evolving threats.”

Read the full article here.


Malls Continue to Crack Down on Unaccompanied Minors
Providence Place Mall now restricting congregations of over four people, unaccompanied minors

The new policies, which also limit videotaping and unauthorized “free speech activity,” went into effect this March.

In March, the Providence Place Mall implemented new security measures, an updated code of conduct and a youth guidance program.

The new guidelines went into effect on March 1 and have been posted around the mall. It contains 13 new prohibitions, including limitations on congregations of four or more people, photographing or videotaping in “an intimidating or threatening manner,” firearms and “free speech activity not authorized in advance.”

The code also prohibits certain activities deemed “unsafe,” including “horseplay,” use of physical force and running. Dorsey explained that Providence Place has experienced “issues” in the past involving youth and “large groups congregating within the mall.”

Mall managers have worked with the Providence Police Department special response team to issue “no trespassing” orders to those who do not comply with the code of conduct, Dorsey said. browndailyherald.com


Walmart Pays Out Millions to Mass Shooting Victims
Families of Walmart mass shooting victims received millions in wrongful death settlements
In the weeks before last November’s second anniversary of the mass shooting at the Battlefield Boulevard Walmart, judges in Norfolk approved a series of wrongful death settlements that saw the company commit to paying out millions to three victims’ families, according to court documents obtained this week by 10 On Your Side.

The last one was finalized last November, just three days before a Chesapeake Circuit Court judge signed off on an order dismissing the final remaining negligence suit against the company in that jurisdiction — all were dismissed before going to trial.

Six people were killed in the Nov. 22, 2022 shooting and several others were injured.

“[Walmart], while denying any liability for this alleged incident or injuries, have nevertheless expressed a willingness to compromise any causes of action which may have accrued to respondent, pursuant to [state law],” a filing in one of the cases reads. wavy.com


Southern Hills Mall Youth Policy sparks questions from community, and clarity from management

Violent crime in Baltimore drops nearly 20% in first quarter, data shows
 

Case Study
ALTO's Collaboration Leads to Justice for Tucson Retailer

Effective resolution of retail crime incidents is critical for ensuring the safety of employees, protecting businesses, and deterring future incidents. This case study highlights the successful resolution of an organized retail crime (ORC) case involving two defendants targeting a national drugstore retailer in Tucson, AZ.

Through ALTO's partnership with the local legal system, both defendants were held accountable and faced appropriate legal consequences, contributing to improved store safety and a safer community.

Case Overview

The investigation and court proceedings for this case unfolded over the course of a year-highlighting both the intricate effort required to achieve justice and the vital collaboration with legal entities needed to advance cases toward resolution. Through these efforts, ALTO remained actively engaged, coordinating with the Tucson legal system and retail representatives to track case status and provide the store with comprehensive legal advocacy.

In January 2024, the Tucson Police Department launched an investigation. By February 2024, warrants were issued for both defendants after they failed to appear at their arraignments. In August 2024, Tucson Police successfully apprehended both individuals.

Between October and December 2024, the ALTO legal team attended several court hearings related to plea agreements, sentencing terms, and additional restitution. They also collaborated closely with prosecutors for case status updates, ensuring the retailer remained fully updated throughout the process.

Balancing Security & Innovation
Forward-thinking CISOs are shining a light on shadow IT
In this Help Net Security interview, Curtis Simpson, CISO and Chief Advocacy Officer at Armis, discusses how CISOs can balance security and innovation while managing the risks of shadow IT. Rather than focusing on restrictive policies, fostering proactive partnerships with business leaders to identify secure alternatives for unsanctioned tools is essential.

Simpson also discusses common misconceptions, security practices, and the role of AI and automation in ensuring asset visibility.

How should CISOs balance security and innovation when it comes to shadow IT?

Rather than taking a restrictive approach, security teams should work closely with business leaders to understand the needs driving shadow IT and identify secure, compliant alternatives. By embracing a model, rooted in proactive security, organizations can maintain a strong security posture while allowing employees to innovate safely.

The most effective means to get in front of shadow IT and mitigate most of the potential risks that it can introduce involves regular operational touchpoints with central points of contact within the teams most likely to or most commonly implementing solutions without involving technology teams.

These touchpoints should be focused on the challenges being faced by business partners like HR, finance, and sales and the potential for the technology organizations (e.g. Office of the CIO, CTO, or CISO) to solve these challenges on their behalf. When positioned from a place of “how can I help” versus “thou must or must not,” technology leaders will allow for true partnerships to be formed and will find opportunities to help business partners while also furthering the technology-related agendas in parallel.

From there, it’s also important that CISOs and CIOs maintain capabilities that enable full visibility into the business landscape, the technologies being used, and in particular, evolutions in such technologies that are introducing unmitigated risks. Employees will always seek out new applications and tools to boost productivity, but these unmanaged assets can introduce risk without proper oversight and controls. This is why CISOs must take a proactive approach and ensure that their teams have real-time visibility into the technology landscape and changes that are increasing the risk to important business capabilities and services.   helpnetsecurity.com


The Age of Security Tool Sprawl
CISOs battle security platform fatigue
It starts with good intentions. A tool to stop phishing. Another to monitor endpoints. One more for cloud workloads. Soon, a well-meaning CISO finds themselves managing dozens of products across teams, each with its own dashboard, alerts, and licensing headaches.

Welcome to the age of security tool sprawl.

CISOs everywhere are facing platform fatigue. According to a 2023 survey by Syxsense, 68% of organizations use more than 11 tools for endpoint management and security, leading to operational challenges like lack of visibility and alert fatigue.

The hidden cost of “more tools”

Buying new tools often feels like progress. Each one promises better detection, faster response, or more granular control. But every addition creates new layers of integration, training, and management.

That leads to three common problems:

• Alert fatigue. Security analysts can’t keep up with alerts from overlapping platforms. Some teams ignore alerts and often miss real threats in the flood of noise.

• Tool duplication. Many tools offer similar functions. One endpoint tool might cover vulnerability scanning, but so does your cloud security platform. Redundancies waste time and money.

• Talent strain. Every new product requires expertise. Teams spend hours learning new UIs, managing licenses, or getting tools to talk to each other. That’s time they’re not spending on real risks. helpnetsecurity.com

All-in-one, AI-driven hacking tool
Autonomous, GenAI-Driven Attacker Platform Enters the Chat

"Xanthorox AI" provides a modular GenAI platform for offensive cyberattacks, which supplies a model-agnostic, one-stop shop for developing a range of cybercriminal operations.

Researchers are sounding the alarm on an emerging all-in-one, AI-driven hacking tool that provides attackers with a modular architecture for developing and launching a range of cybercriminal operations, such as phishing campaigns, vulnerability exploitation, or even ransomware attacks.

"Xanthorox AI," a cyberattack platform first spotted in March circulating on darknet hacker forums and encrypted channels, enables a style of self-directed, autonomous AI-driven attacks that defenders feared may eventually appear when generative AI (GenAI) technology first became mainstream, according to research from SlashNext published on April 7.

Rather than relying on jailbreaks or tweaks to existing AI large language models (LLMs) for its capabilities, like its GenAI threat predecessors WormGPT and EvilGPT, Xanthorox AI is in and of itself a self-contained architecture hosted on the servers of its own developers. darkreading.com


High-Severity Cloud Security Alerts Tripled in 2024

The rise of compromised LLM attacks

Chicago, IL: Crash-and-grab burglars slam sedan into South Side GameStop store
Crash-and-grab burglars targeted a videogame store on the city's South Side on Saturday morning, Chicago police said. Officers responded to the GameStop at 79th and Cicero just before 5 a.m. Police said a group of thieves drove a dark-colored sedan through the front windows of the business. They stole merchandise from inside and then took off in the car. No injuries were reported. There is no one in custody, and Area One detectives are investigating.  abc7chicago.com


Gainesville, GA: Speedy Gonzalez accused of $20K Walmart shoplifting spree across North Georgia
Speedy Gonzalez, with a lengthy criminal history, is charged with shoplifting over $20,000 worth of merchandise from Walmart stores across North Georgia. Gonzalez used a method of concealing high-priced items in larger containers, paying only for the container, and leaving with the concealed goods. He was arrested at a Gainesville Walmart, and authorities are connecting him to over 20 thefts in the region, with additional charges being pursued.  fox5atlanta.com


Howell, NJ: Two Arrested For Theft At Ulta
Two New York residents were arrested and charged after stealing thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise from Ulta in Howell Township. Last week, Howell Police Officers responded to the ULTA in Howell Commons regarding shoplifting with the suspect fleeing on foot. According to police, Ptl. Matt Cuzzo spotted the suspects at the back of the plaza running toward a wooded area and directed officers to that area. Officers apprehended a 25-year-old Manhattan resident and a 21-year-old Bronx resident. The two attempted to steal over $6,300 worth of merchandise from ULTA, police said.  jerseyshoreonline.com


Hingham, MA: Two Connecticut women placed on bail after allegedly stealing thousands in merchandise from Massachusetts and New York stores
Two Connecticut women have been extradited from New York to the Commonwealth and arraigned on organized retail crime charges in connection with thefts at an Old Navy store in the summer of 2024, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz has announced. Tyeisha Bridges, 32, and Shatoya Lewis, 25, were arraigned late Thursday in Hingham District Court on one count each of Organized Retail Crime, Larceny over $1,200, Larceny under $1,200 and two counts of Conspiracy. Bridges and Lewis allegedly collaborated to steal merchandise from an Old Navy location in Hanover on two separate occasions in the summer of 2024. Hanover Police responded to the store on July 9, 2024, after reports of three women carrying bags full of clothing out of the store without paying. Further investigation by local law enforcement and the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office Organized Retail Crime Taskforce found Bridges and Lewis were two of the women involved in this July incident. Old Navy loss prevention personnel determined 253 pieces of merchandise were stolen during this incident, resulting in about $3,950 worth in losses. Bridges and Lewis were subsequently implicated in a separate incident at the same Old Navy location on August 20, 2024, and allegedly stole about $920 in merchandise. Both defendants were recently arrested in New York state and were taken into custody by Hanover Police detectives and returned to the Commonwealth to face criminal charges.  fallriverreporter.com


Springettsbury Township, PA: Security Officer pepper-sprayed as women fled Boscov's with $1600 of stolen clothes