State of the Industry and NRF Protect Update
Bob Moraca and
Joe LaRocca


Introduction with Gus Downing


The Zellman Group
Stuart Levine and
 Stan Welch


WG Security Products
Ed Wolfe

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Other Upcoming Events

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Since October 6,200 Job Cuts at 4 Retailers
Nordstrom to cut 350 to 400 jobs in HQ & Region Support Teams in Q2
In January, Macy's said it would cut about 2,100 jobs across its operations, and close 40 stores through this year resulting in another 2,700 job losses. Last October, Neiman Marcus eliminated 500 positions, and in February Wal-Mart Stores Inc. cut more than 100 jobs at its Bentonville, Ark., headquarters in addition to the 450 positions cut there last October. wwd.com

Tens of thousands of people are calling for a Target boycott
More than 167,000 people have signed a pledge to boycott Target after the retailer said it would welcome transgender customers to use any bathroom or fitting room that matches their gender identity. The boycott pledge was started by the conservative American Family Association (AFA). businessinsider.com

FedEx Can't Duck Money Laundering Counts In Drug Case
A California federal judge ruled from the bench Wednesday that FedEx can't duck the government's money laundering accusations from the shipping company's alleged role helping online pharmacies ship prescription drugs to addicts and drug dealers.

FedEx management knew the company was delivering to users and drug dealers after drivers complained that customers demanding pills were stopping them on the road, prosecutors say. The drivers said that deliveries were addressed to vacant parking lots where multiple customers were waiting. FedEx also set up a separate credit check system just for online pharmacies after it was repeatedly unable to collect unpaid bills from pharmacies that were shut down by law enforcement, according to the indictment.  law360.com

NY AG Dings Walgreens For Misleading Ads
Fined $500,000 & Reform Advertising Practices
NY AG said it "deceptively induce" customers to purchase products through a number of misleading practices. Publishing print advertisements that would not be honored in-store leaving incorrect price tags on shelves to make customers think an item was being sold for one price, only to be charged differently at the register. "Walgreens has failed to provide the staffing and systems needed to accurately price its products.

Along with other reforms Walgreens will be audited and for every store that fails two consecutive external audits, Walgreens will have to pay a $2,500 penalty to the state. law360.com

OSHA Issues Final Rule on Retaliation Complaints under Food Safety Modernization Act
OSHA established a final rule that creates procedures for handling retaliation complaints under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act. The rule, which was issued April 18, also explains burdens of proof, remedies and statute of limitations similar to other existing whistleblower protection rules.

"Food industry workers must never be silenced by the threat of losing their jobs when their safety or the safety of the public is at stake," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. "This rule underscores the agency's commitment to protect the rights of workers who report illegal activity in their workplace."  ehstoday.com

Kmart, Sears closing 78 stores, holding liquidation sales
68 Kmart and 10 Sears stores this summer. The list of closing stores can be found here. At the end of the fourth quarter, the company operated 731 Sears stores and 941 Kmart doors, for a total of 1,672 locations.  kfvs12.com

Over $32K Raised for Fallen LP Officer Through Family's GoFundMe Page
Jaseramie Ferguson was the Loss Prevention Professional we lost nearly two weeks ago. Jaseramie, a father of 3 small children was shot and killed while making an apprehension at Walmart in Georgia. We have posted the link for the Loss Prevention Foundation's Benevolent Fund and that mission is ongoing. We would be remiss to not acknowledge another fund that has raised over $32,000 for the Ferguson family through the donations of over 725 people. The gofundme account was established by the family and also continues to accept donations. The outpouring of support for the family's gofundme account has been a mixture of fellow Walmart Loss Prevention professionals, Loss Prevention folks with other retails, family and friends from all over the country. It truly shows how well we can unite as an industry and community when tragedy occurs.

Slain Walmart officer remembered at vigil as a good man
J.D. Ferguson's family was supposed to be in Indiana Thursday night, celebrating the launch of his mother-in-law's debut CD and her first concert. Instead, they were gathered with friends at a candlelight vigil for him in the parking lot of the Walmart in Lilburn where he was fatally shot on April 10 while carrying out his duties as the store's loss prevention officer. The only song anyone was singing was a mournful "Amazing Grace." The singing eventually quieted down to a humming of the tune as loved one shed tears over tiny candles and black and white balloons were released into the night sky. gwinnettdailypost.com

Genetec Inc. Introduces New Subscription-Based
Ownership Model for Security Center
Genetec Inc., a leading provider of open-architecture, unified IP security solutions today announced a new subscription model for its flagship unified security platform, Genetec Security Center. Security Center Subscription introduces new flexible ownership and payment options that allow customers to get access to Security Center on a 'pay-as-you-go' basis. Subscribing customers receive the same local, on-premises version of Security Center and pay for it on a monthly or annual basis, as opposed to purchasing the entire system upfront. prweb.com

Forter raises $32 million to automate retailers' battle against online fraud
Forter, a security-focused company that brings real-time fraud-prevention technology to online retailers, has raised $32 million to continue its global growth and expand across the U.S. Founded out of Tel Aviv, Israel in 2013, Forter has now raised $50 million in funding, after its $15 million round back in 2014 and $3 million Series A six months earlier. The latest cash influx was led by new entrant Scale Venture Partners, with participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital and New Enterprise Associates. venturebeat.com

26th ASIS New York City Security Conference & Expo
Are you interested in networking with top security industry leaders and learning more about the latest anti-terrorism tactics, cyber security, metrics, and critical security issues in urban areas? If so, join more than 2,200 of your peers and 130+ exhibitors at the 26th ASIS New York City Security Conference & Expo, April 27-28, 2016.

Aeropostale preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Aldi Exec Sees Possibility For 'Hundreds Of Stores' In SoCal
 

Quarterly Same Store Sales Results
Steve Madden Q1 retail comp's up 10.7%, total company net sales up 1.7%
Skechers Q1 domestic store comp's up 9.8%, overall net sales up 27.4%
Starbucks Q1 U.S. comp's up 7%, Global comp's up 6%, sales up 9%
McDonald's Q1 Global comp's up 6.2%, U.S. comp's up 5.4%, consolidated revenue down 1%


 

All the News - One Place - One Source - One Time
The D&D Daily respects your time
& doesn't filter retail's reality
 

Retailers Reporting 10-Fold or Larger Increase in Chargebacks
Since Oct. 1 EMV Roll-Out
"At this point, the majority of major retailers have either implemented EMV [payments] or are in the process, and for the most part, retailers have done their part, but the holdup is the credit card companies who have dropped the ball and haven't certified the [software and] equipment, and that's frustrating for retailers," said NRF spokesman J. Craig Shearman in an interview on Tuesday.

It's a lack of planning and preparation on behalf of the card industry," Shearman added. "Card companies will tell you they announced the liability date a year or two ahead, but the truth is they didn't provide all the technology details and standards until a few weeks [before the Oct. 1 deadline.] Retailers didn't have years to prepare. It was a 'hurry up and wait' process."

As a result, some retailers, who used to get $10,000 in chargebacks, are now facing $100,000, he said. "There's been a dramatic increase in chargebacks - no relationship to EMV or not," Shearman said. csoonline.com

Visa, BofA Rip Lack Of Evidence In Chip-Card Liability Suit
Visa, Bank of America and others facing a proposed antitrust class action alleging they worked together to shift liability to retailers during the rollout of microchip-enabled credit cards on Monday asked a California federal court to dismiss the suit, arguing it is void of any facts to back up claims of a conspiracy. Florida's B&R Supermarket Inc. and Grove Liquors LLC didn't point to any agreement between banks or credit card companies to shift liability to retailers, nor to any communications, documents, meetings or individuals supporting the alleged conspiracy, the motion states. The fact that the defendants - including Visa, MasterCard, Bank of America and Citibank - agreed to enforce their shift to the chip-card readers at the same time just shows that independent businesses wanted to "minimize confusion and facilitate efficiency," not rip off retailers, according to the motion. law360.com

New point-of-sale malware Multigrain steals card data over DNS
Security researchers have found a new memory-scraping malware program that steals payment card data from point-of-sale (PoS) terminals and sends it back to attackers using the Domain Name System (DNS). csoonline.com

Sprouts Farmers Market employees sue retailer for leaking W2 info
in Data-Phishing Scam
The suit relates to an incident around the week of March 14 when Sprouts compiled and sent off all of its approximately 21,000 employees' 2015 W2 forms to an unknown party, not realizing the request was part of a data-phishing scam that could compromise employees' private information through potential identity theft.  law360.com

First Neiman Marcus, now P.F. Chang's
- Sizing Up the Impact of Court Decision on Post-Breach Class Action Lawsuit
Does a federal appellate court's decision allowing a breach-related class-action lawsuit against restaurant chain P.F Chang's to move forward - and a similar, earlier decision in a case against Neiman Marcus - signal a change in tide for post-breach lawsuits? Legal experts offer widely varying opinions.

Last week, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court's ruling that rejected the case against P.F. Chang's. The higher court ruled the case could proceed because the risk of "future injuries" suffered by consumers impacted by the breach are "sufficiently imminent."

Back in July 2015, the Seventh Circuit also reversed a lower court's decision to dismiss the Neiman Marcus case, which seeks damages for consumers who had card data exposed as a result of the luxury retailer's 2013 data breach. In that ruling, the court found that Neiman Marcus' decision to provide potentially affected customers with a year of free credit monitoring and identity theft protection amounted to acknowledgement of significant risk. The panel also found that consumers impacted by the breach "should not have to wait until hackers commit identity theft or credit card fraud in order to give the class standing." databreachtoday.com

Global biometrics market to grow from $15B in 2015 to $35.5B by 2020
Automated fingerprint identification systems (AFIS) will dominate the sector during this period, with other forms of biometric identification - face, iris, voice, and vein - coming in second. Biometric techniques - ideally paired with other forms of identity verification for extra security - promise to solve some of the most vexing authentication challenges.

For organizations, biometrics can offer near-certainty of a user's identity, better audit trails of online activity, and improved employee productivity and satisfaction. Despite these and other benefits, organizations considering biometric solutions need to understand that these solutions entail challenges and risks of their own. An article on CSOonline highlights some of these biometric issues. csoonline.com

Court Affirms Use of CGL Policies to Cover Cyber Breach Litigation Costs
A recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the right of a company to use its commercial general liability coverage to pay for legal fees arising from class-action lawsuits following data breaches.

Insurance companies have argued commercial general liability policies are not intended to cover actions caused by data breaches, instead wanting companies to buy cyberinsurance policies to cover such litigation costs.  wsj.com
 

Le Chateau to close another 40 stores in next three years
It closed 11 stores in the last year to reach 211 locations and plans to close 14 more in 2016. By early 2019, Le Chateau expects to shrink its retail network to about 171 stores, the least in the chain since 2007 and a 30 per cent reduction since it began closing stores in 2012.

The chain lost $35.7 million for the 12 months ended Jan. 31, compared with a $38.7-million loss a year earlier. Sales decreased 5.3 per cent to $236.9 million, as same-store sales slipped 1.9 per cent. Online sales grew 34.8 per cent last year and are trending at 50 per cent. Savings from store closures outweigh additional online sales, however the company is targeting for them to account for 10 per cent of overall sales within two years. financialpost.com

Jewellers Vigilance Canada and Jewelers Security Alliance awarded grant to help fund security initiatives, further industry collaboration 
The JCK Industry Fund, now in its eighteenth year, was established to enhance the image of the jewelry industry and to foster development and research of programs that would benefit the industry. JCK has announced the six recipients of its 18th annual Industry Fund, awarding the winners with more than $293,000 in grants this year. The recipients were selected by an Industry Fund Advisory Committee, consisting of representatives from JCK, retailers, and manufacturers. Two of the winners are:

Jewellers Vigilance Canada (JVC Canada):
"Jewellers Vigilance Canada and Jewelers Security Alliance applied for a joint submission in order to host a North American Jewelry Crime Conference in Toronto, Canada. Thanks to the JCK Industry Fund's grant, the two-day event will take place September 26-28, 2016, and allow over 100 law enforcement and security personnel to not only understand the resources JSA and JVC Canada provide to them, but also learn the investigative techniques and tools specifically designed for jewelry crime as well as gain experience and expertise in fighting jewelry crime." - Phyllis Richard, JVC Canada executive director

Jewelers Security Alliance (JSA):
"This grant will result in greater cooperation by law enforcement agencies and security personnel in Canada and the U.S. in combating the international criminal gangs and fences that prey on the diamond, jewelry, and watch industry in both countries." - John Kennedy, JSA president   jckonline.com

RCC Disuptes Toronto Star Article on Gender Wage Gap in Retail
Issue: A recent Toronto Star article summarized a report titled "The Gender Wage Gap in Ontario's Retail Sector: Devaluing Women's Work & Women Workers". The premise of the article is that women working in retail are especially hard-hit by the gender wage gap.

RCC Response: In fact, Statistics Canada data shows that the retail sector has one of the smallest gender wage gaps of any sector in Canada, at around $1,000 annually. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, a well-known progressive think tank, made this point clear in its report titled Every Step You Take, at pp. 12-13. linkedin.com

Ontario Food Terminal strike holds up traffic in Etobicoke
A strike outside the Ontario Food Terminal is holding up traffic on the eastbound lanes of The Queensway in Etobicoke this morning. Employees of Fresh Taste Produce, which supplies produce to retailers such Metro and Sobey's, formed a small picket line outside the terminal shortly after midnight. The union representing the workers, Teamsters Local 419, said the workers have just joined the union but have yet to reach a first contract. cbc.ca

Retail Canada is Booming - 6th Quarter of Growth
Canadians go on spending spree - Up 6.24% in Q1
The report, which measures credit and debit card spending, with the biggest increases seen in women's clothing (11.2%), lawn and garden supply (10.6%) and fast food (9.6%). With the low Canadian dollar, spending on foreign cards increased 17.45% year over year. Data showed that cards from the U.S. drove the highest foreign spending volumes. marketingmag.ca

Metro Inc holds its own in grocery price wars, reporting higher profit and sales
 

Northern store employee Medevaced after fight with Burglar; Worker entered store early Wednesday morning after being contacted by alarm company
A Northern store employee was injured in a fight with a suspected thief early Wednesday morning in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. RCMP say the employee had entered the store in the early morning hours after being contacted by the alarm company. On entering the store, the worker was approached by a male suspect and a fight took place which resulted in injuries to the employee. The suspect then fled the building. The worker was treated at the health centre and then medevaced to Iqaluit with non-life-threatening injuries. A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged with break and enter, theft, aggravated assault, mischief and possession of weapons for a dangerous purpose. cbc.ca

Calgary, CN: Firearms worth $10,000 stolen from Cabela's while manager worked in back room
Calgary police fear that $10,000 worth of weapons stolen from a northeast sporting-goods store on Wednesday will turn up in future violent crimes. The handguns and rifles were taken while a store manager worked in a back room at Cabela's, at 851 64th Ave. N.E. Officers were called around 6:30 a.m. to respond to reports of a break-in at the store. When they arrived, they found the front doors on the north side of the business had been smashed with a hammer or bar, and several weapons had been stolen. The incident took place around 4:40 a.m. but was not noticed until about two hours later when staff started arriving for work. A store manager was in a back room during the incident but did not hear the break-in. calgaryherald.com

Penticton, BC: Meth-fueled incident at Cherry Lane Mall results in jail term
A man described as experiencing a "methamphetamine-induced psychosis" during an incident at Cherry Lane Mall earlier this year will spend another 143 days in jail after being sentenced in Penticton Provincial Court earlier this week. Danny Ross entered guilty pleas last week to charges of causing a disturbance, possession of a controlled substance, assault, possessing a weapon for dangerous purpose and resisting arrest. A witness told police a 79-year-old man had been struck in the head in an unprovoked attack by Ross, who was later found by police in an alcove in the northwest corner of the mall. infotel.ca

Saskatoon: Man arrested in Westmount Foods robbery case; police still looking for suspects

Prince George: Shoplifter with a basket full of meat pulls knife on Save-On-Foods employee

Peterborough, ON: Female Customer attacked, robbed while in Peterborough Mac's convenience store, female suspect arrested

Holyrood, NF: RCMP Seek Help Identifying Alleged Liquor Thieves

Battlefords, SK: RCMP Search for Street Market Armed Robbery Suspect

Peoples Jewelers in the Garden City Shopping Centre, Winnipeg, MB reported a Credit Fraud, the male subject was able to get away with $4,070 in merchandise
 

Michigan State Police busts iPhone identity theft trio
Hitting Apple Stores - selling iPhones $150 each
The Michigan State Police believe there's an identity theft ring targeting iPhone users across the country, a faction of which was caught making its way through West Michigan. The trio from New York of stealing identities and using them to buy iPhone from other people's phone accounts.

The suspects would use information to pose as customers who were eligible for an iPhone upgrade, such as their name and their address. They would enter Apple stores and present themselves as the original cell phone owner. Using the information they had about their victim, they would bypass the general security questions asked by the clerk. When a second form of ID was requested suspects would flash fake credit cards. The new phone would ultimately be charged to the victim's iPhone account. After suspects left the store, troopers say they would destroy the phony credit card and I.D to clear their tracks.

For every cell phone they get from posing as their victims, police believe they were making $150. fox17online.com



Lincoln woman racked up nearly $200,000 on stolen credit cards
Police believe Amanda Koeber, 34, racked up nearly $200,000 in fraudulent transactions. Authorities believe she used credit cards made from information stolen from businesses in five states to purchase computers from Simply Mac and Best Buy in Lincoln. "Over the course of one month over $193,000 of transactions were conducted." ketv.com


Columbus, OH: Police seek suspect in theft of $2,500 in teeth whitening kits
Police are seeking an Ohio man who's accused of stealing more than $2,500 in teeth whitening kits, and so far, has made a clean getaway. Officials say the 46-yeary-old suspect is accused of taking only Crest-brand teeth whitening strips in numerous thefts over the past two months. The thefts took place at stores in and around Columbus. Officials say the suspect stole $420 worth of teeth whitening strips from one store in Ohio's capital city. 1310news.com

Chicago, IL: Repeat Retail Thief Fills Big Empty Purse at Victoria's Secret at Chicago Ridge Mall
A 52-year-old woman filled her purse with various merchandise from Victoria's Secret, then left the store where was confronted by employees, prosecutors said. Elissa Keller appeared before Cook County Judge Peter Felice on a felony charge of retail theft. The prosecutor said Keller was observed filling her purse with lotions and perfumes totaling $455. All of the merchandise was recovered. patch.com


UPDATE: Trumbull, CT: Supervisor let Home Depot employees steal from store Seven Home Depot employees face charges in a series of robberies that police say were approved by a supervisor. The Connecticut Post reports the employees at the chain's Trumbull store would go on after-hours "shopping sprees" three times a week between June and October 2015. The supervisor told police he allowed the thefts in exchange for a loan. He is seen on video opening the rolling door to the garden center to allow the employees to exit the store with power tools, doors and other items. Police say as much as $300,000 in merchandise was stolen. ctpost.com

Fort Wayne, IN: Repeat Offender sentenced to 3 years for a series of thefts totaling nearly $10,000
One of the men involved with a theft ring was sentenced to three years of probation Thursday in Allen Superior Court. Luke H. Vorst aka Luke Fischer, 23, received the three-year sentence after pleading guilty last month to one count of corrupt business influence, a Level 5 felony. Vorst was one of four men who stole large quantities of liquor from Kroger as well as taking long sheets of $30 Hoosier Lottery tickets from gas stations, according to a probable-cause affidavit filed in the case. The series of thefts from Feb. 28, 2015 through July 3 totaled $9,144.89. news-sentinel.com

Four Brooklyn NY men busted with 75 fake credit cards hitting Best Buy in Marlborough, MA

Watch Nedap Retail's recent LPNN interview: Nedap's intelligent article surveillance solutions bridge the gap between high-performance loss prevention and a pleasant customer experience with smart features such as metal detectors, dashboarding, customer counting and much more. Hear from Wouter Ubbels, Director of Channel Sales Americas, and Pat O'Leary, VP and General Manager for Nedap North America.

6 Tips on How to Get Work Done While Traveling  Like a lot of leaders, you are probably away from the office a lot. While spending time at trade shows and conferences can be great for your company, how can you still get work done? Here are some tips to help you. Take the call in the car

5 Ways to Experience Flow and Get Crazy Productive  On average, a person gets 70,000 thoughts running through their brain each day, and if you don't learn to organize your mind, productivity will go right down the drain. When your mind is organized, you find flow and stay completely focused on your task. Here are some steps you can use to find your own flow. Choose tasks carefully