Survey Says: COVID-19 Sparks Changes in Consumer Behaviors

The 2020 retail landscape is looking drastically different due to COVID-19. Stay-at-home orders, social distancing guidelines, brick-and-mortar store closings and product shortages have prompted consumers' behaviors and shopping habits to change. These changes fuel the need for retailers to explore how they can best meet customers' desires in the short-term, while restoring consumer confidence for the long-term as more stores begin to reopen.

To better understand consumer sentiment and their shopping habits during this time, Sensormatic Solutions surveyed over 1,000 U.S. consumers, 18-years and older, between April 24-25, 2020.

Shoppers are taking extra precautions when shopping in-store

Our survey found 59% of respondents are moderately or very concerned about shopping in-store. As expected, extra precautions are being taken by most consumers heading to the store. Sixty-one of respondents said they are trying to shop during less busy hours and 49% of respondents are using self-checkout as a precaution when shopping in-store.

Currently, the most important factors to customers when shopping in-store are cleanliness (37%) and product availability (34%). When asked what actions would make them feel the most comfortable with returning to stores, 32% of respondents stated when retailers are better at controlling the number of people in stores to promote social distancing would be the most important, followed by 25% who said adding more fulfillment options (buy online pick-up in stores, curbside pickup).

Consumers are spending less and making fewer visits to physical stores

Embracing BOPIS and curbside pickup

Bringing consumers back into stores

Read more survey findings here
 

RMH Franchise Leverages Innovative Service Bundle
from Interface Security Systems
Interface Security Systems, a leading managed services provider delivering managed network, asset protection, and business intelligence solutions to distributed enterprises, provided RMH Franchise, the world's second-largest Applebee's franchisee, with secure SD-WAN over broadband, 4G/LTE wireless WAN backup and VoIP solutions.

A significant update for RMH's aging network environment, the solutions are boosting RMH's application performance, wireless failover capabilities, and providing a seamless voice solution that has proved to be particularly useful during times of lockdown and social distancing.

Read full press release here | Read full case study here
 

ANNOUNCEMENT - IMPACT 2020 is Going Digital: Registration Opens Tuesday, June 16.

Isolated Protesting Continues However Sparse
Retail Response - City Hall Takeover - Demands for Reforms

Photo of beauty products locked up at supermarket sparks racism debate
A photo of two United States supermarket shelves has sparked a debate online, with many arguing the post sums up the everyday racism that exists towards black people.

Jesús A. Rodríguez posted two photos to Twitter showing hair care products for African-American hair behind a glass cabinet, while other hair products sat on an open shelf.

"It's more than just the police," Mr Rodríguez captioned the two photos and it was quickly retweeted more than 180,000 times.

The tweet attracted hundreds of responses, with many saying it was one of the best examples of the unconscious bias that exists towards black people.

But others claimed it wasn't an issue of race, saying that big US chains like Walmart would often have extra security for items if they were frequently stolen from a store.

Soon others were sharing other instances of products for sale in stores that appeared to show bias towards people of color. dailytelegraph.com.au

Grocery retailers take stand against racism

Chains step up with millions of dollars in donations and programs to support racial justice

Grocery retailers are speaking out against racism and funneling funds to organizations that promote racial diversity and inclusion.

Hy-Vee said Tuesday that it will donate $1 million and commit to providing 1 million volunteer hours to groups supporting racial unity and equality.

Smart & Final, based in Commerce, Calif., plans to donate $100,000 to the educational arm of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which advocates for racial justice.

The Kroger Co., announced that it's creating a $5 million fund through The Kroger Co. Foundation to improve social diversity, equity and inclusion.

Publix Super Markets plans to make a $1 million contribution to National Urban League affiliates across the Southeast.

Albertsons Cos., the second-largest U.S. supermarket operator, on Friday hosted a town hall meeting with representatives of its division diversity councils and some of its ERG leaders and associates to discuss the issues surrounding the demonstrations and provide store directors with talking points for their teams.

Target and the Target Foundation unveiled a $10 million investment to support partners such as the National Urban League and the African-American Leadership Forum in addition to adding new partners in Minneapolis-St. Paul and nationwide. Target's initial efforts also include 10,000 hours of pro-bono consulting services for black- and people-of-color-owned small businesses in the Twin Cities.

Walmart and it's Walmart Foundation are committing $100 million to create a new center on racial equity, that will support philanthropic initiatives focused on the nation's financial, health care, education and criminal justice systems.

H-E-B became one of the nation's first grocery retailers to earmark financial support for causes battling racial injustice. The company announced a $1 million fund, dubbed "Be the Change," to help advance the conversation on addressing racial inequity and injustice in Texas communities. supermarketnews.com

Protests continue across the US and around the world
Peaceful protests continued today around the US and the world following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis two weeks ago.

Thousands of mourners gathered at The Fountain of Praise church in Houston yesterday to pay their respects to Floyd, who will be buried next to his mother. cnn.com

'Property of the Seattle People':
Protesters Erect Sign on Police Precinct, Take Over City Hall
Protesters marched through Seattle, Washington, on June 9, erecting a sign that read "this space is now property of the Seattle people" on a local police precinct. Demonstrators also flooded the Seattle City Hall, where they shouted "hey, hey, ho, ho, Durkan has got to go" among other chants.

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan had been criticized for her leadership during ongoing protests for racial justice in the city. City council members voiced frustrations with the police response to protests on Monday, local media reported. yahoo.com

Families of New Yorkers killed by NYPD lead Tuesday protests in NYC

State government starting to act on police reforms

Protesters marched across the Brooklyn Bridge on Tuesday, and even shut down Manhattan-bound traffic, as demonstrations continued over the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.

Thousands of protesters continued their call for police reforms and cutting the NYPD's budget. They are demanding change, and in some cases, change is what they are getting. State lawmakers formally repealed the law that for years has allowed police to shield their personnel records when accused of wrongdoing.

Nearly 20 family members of New Yorkers killed by police between 1973 and 2019 came together at City Hall to demand the immediate defunding of the NYPD by at least $1 billion, the repeal of 50A, passage of special legislation and dismissals of the officers involved in their loved ones' deaths. abc7ny.com

Summer heat slows some protest momentum Tuesday
No Protests in Tampa - St. Pete Protestors Dwindled at 10 PM
UPDATE 10 P.M.: Protests in St. Petersburg, FL., began to dwindle after more than three hours of chanting though the streets of downtown.

A group of nearly 100 marched from City Hall down Central Avenue to Beach Drive, before returning to City Hall at the end of the night. The protest was largely peaceful. There was no police presence in the streets.

Terron Gland, an event organizer, said they've marched for 11 days. Martin Luther King Jr., he said, marched 381 days. The group promised to go to 382.

"We're going to set the standard," he said into the megaphone.

Meanwhile the streets in Tampa were empty Tuesday night for the first time since May 30. No protesters gathered downtown, in South Tampa or Ybor City. tampabay.com

Portland police chief resigns, promoting black officer: It's the 'right moment'

Online Weapon Sales Spike 79% Week of May 26-June 1st

'Defund Police' message painted outside of Atlanta Police headquarters

Philly Lawmakers Propose To Outlaw Police Chokehold, Require Officers To Be Evaluated For PTSD

Denver PD ban chokeholds, require body cam use for SWAT, more reporting for officers

Houston police reform proposal involves cutting 199 unfilled PD positions

Phoenix police will stop using strangleholds on people, chief says

DOJ & FBI & Local Police - Riot Arrests Start Mounting
Shootings - Arson - Illegal Firearms

18 Murders in 24 Hours - 85 Shootings During Last Weekend of May
Chicago sees deadliest day in decades amid protests and curfew

Criminals Took Advantage of PD Distracted by Protests

Chicago saw its deadliest day in at least 30 years last month, with 18 killings within a 24-hour period on May 31. The violence occurred as protests over George Floyd's death in Minneapolis also spurred rioting and looting in the Windy City.

Over the last weekend in May, 85 people were shot and 24 killed, according to the University of Chicago Crime Lab. Mr Kapustin added that protests over Mr Floyd's 25 May death in police custody may have distracted Chicago Police Department (CPD) resources from normal patrol duties.

"When CPD has to turn its attention elsewhere and there's suddenly this vacuum that opens up, you also unfortunately see a picture like you saw with [last] weekend where you see an absurd amount of carnage, people getting injured and killed," he said. bbc.com

Two Individuals Charged With Arson Of St. Paul Health And Nutrition Store

Baton Rouge, LA: Residents Face Federal Arson Charges in Connection with Area Business Fires

Erie, PA: Man Indicted on Arson Charge for Intentional Fire at Coffee Shop

Philadelphia, PA: 2 Convicted Felons Charged for Illegal Possession of Firearms Amid Protests

San Diego, CA: Man Charged with Possessing Molotov Cocktails at La Mesa Protest

2 Atlanta police officers charged with assault during protests sue, seeking jobs back
 

Fauci Says Covid Pandemic His 'Worst Nightmare,' Far From Over
Now that some nations and states are emerging from lockdowns, there's still a risk that the virus will also return, Fauci said.

The infection won't "burn itself out with mere public health measures," he said. "We're going to need a vaccine for the entire world, billions and billions of doses."

The U.S. federal government is planning to fund and undertake large-scale studies of three experimental coronavirus vaccines starting this summer. bloomberg.com

Texas, Arkansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida See Spikes
COVID-19 surge in Texas sparks reopening fears
Rising coronavirus cases and hospitalizations in Texas are underscoring fears about the danger of reopening. Now the state is seeing a surge of cases of the coronavirus. The state reached a new high of coronavirus hospitalizations on Monday.

Arizona and North Carolina have also reached new highs and South Carolina, Arkansas and Florida are seeing spikes in cases as well. thehill.com

As U.S. Reopens, Some States See Cases Rise
At least 15 cases have been linked to protests, including five National Guard members and one police officer in Nebraska.

Some parts of the South are finally showing signs of progress. New case reports have started trending downward in Alabama and have leveled off in Mississippi. But persistent growth continues in Arkansas, North Carolina and Florida. And in South Carolina. nytimes.com

More Food Shortages - Higher Food Prices - More Theft?
Pandemic Moves Beyond Meatpacking Industry
Coronavirus outbreaks at 60 U.S. plants raise specter of more food shortages

These are the first national numbers of their kind.

It's a grim reality that's playing out across the country as COVID-19 spreads beyond the meat processing plants that have captured the national spotlight. At least 60 food-processing facilities outside the meatpacking industry have seen outbreaks, with more than 1,000 workers diagnosed with the virus, according to a new study from Environmental Working Group.

These are the first national numbers of their kind. The advocacy group compiled its figures using local media reports because there are no federal agencies reporting the data. The true total is almost certainly higher. Fruit and vegetable packers, bakers and dairy workers are risking infection as the virus spreads through processing plants where employees deemed essential have mostly remained on the job during the pandemic, sometimes laboring in close quarters.

America's food suppliers have seen some of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks of any industry outside healthcare.

The Teamsters union is planning a national "call to action" on Wednesday with demonstrations in almost 30 cities for better protection of food supply-chain workers.

"We have to stay open to supply essential goods for the American people," said Geoff Freeman, president of the Consumer Brands Assn. Companies have taken many steps to protect workers, including providing protective equipment and implementing "aggressive" measures to make sure sick employees who stay home are compensated, he said.

"Make no mistake: We cannot eliminate the risk. The challenge for us is to mitigate the risk," Freeman said latimes.com

Editor's Note: This could drive a rise in shoplifting and ORC

REI, Macy's, Ulta Beauty, and Gap are reopening stores
Here's how your shopping experience will change
Nordstrom and Macy's, for example, will close some fitting rooms and temporarily quarantine items that have been tried on before returning them to the sales floor. Gap is planning to close fitting rooms altogether.

Nordstrom - to limit customers, close some fitting rooms and clean open ones after use. Hold returned merch. for period of time. Increase cleaning. Add plexiglass partitions. Shift to contactless payment options. Add drive-thru pickup and dedicated parking for returns.

Macy's - hand-sanitizer stations, plexiglass shields at register, close some fitting rooms, hold items that have been tried on or returned for 24 hours, increase cleanings in high-traffic areas, require customers to use hand sanitizer before trying on jewelry, post signs about social distancing and safe hygiene practices.

Best Buy - schedule appointments for visits, employee will call shoppers to go over safety measures, associate will shop with the customer, products wiped down, sneezeguards, credit-card machine and screen wiped down after each use, employee will escort customers outside the store when finished.

Gap - Kohl's - Ulta Beauty - REI - American Eagle Outfitters: businessinsider.com

NYC coronavirus numbers lowest since beginning of pandemic
 

Study: Security Execs Had to Make Quick Decisions on Work-From-Home Shift

A third were unprepared for the sudden move to go remote-leading to off-the-shelf solutions heading home with employees.

There wasn't a lot of time to shift gears when the COVID-19 crisis broke out in a big way-and that led to some tough decisions for tech execs as they tried to make sense of the new climate.

But with a sudden shift to 75 percent of employees working remote in 2020, according to Cybersecurity Insiders and Pulse Secure, executives needed a way to secure their employees, and ultimately, the solutions were very much off-the-shelf options, according to the companies' 2020 Remote Work-From-Home Cybersecurity Report [registration].

The study of 400-plus IT security decision makers found that more than half of respondents (54 percent) had less than a week to prepare, and a third weren't sufficiently prepared for such a shift. That led to solutions such as antivirus/anti-malware (77 percent), firewalls (77 percent), virtual private networks (66 percent), and multifactor authentication (66 percent) finding quick use, according to the report.

There were, of course, other concerns for IT pros as well, with issues of training (59 percent), home network security (56 percent), and use of personal devices (43 percent) ranking near the top.

"Beyond offering a wake-up call for emergency preparedness, the findings indicate a strong likelihood of organizations permanently extending work-from-home flexibility and advancing secure access capabilities," associationsnow.com

Equifax to spend $1 Billion on Cybersecurity
Equifax's Latest Breach Settlement Is Skimpy to Plaintiffs, Critics Say
A federal judge's preliminary approval last week of Equifax Inc.'s latest multimillion-dollar settlement for its massive 2017 data breach highlights the long wait times and measly payouts that have become the norm for those affected by the security lapse, consumer advocates say.

On Thursday, the U.S. Court for the Northern District of Georgia allowed a $30.5 million class-action settlement to proceed for final approval in October. The package would require Equifax to invest $25 million in data security improvements over the next two years, but pay just up to $5.5 million to certain financial institutions affected by the hack.

Equifax already allocated more than $1 billion to technology and cybersecurity improvements between 2018 and 2020, Chief Security Officer Jamil Farshchi said last year. wsj.com

Study Finds Open Source Vulnerabilities Doubled in 2019

Increasing Use of Open Source Software Creates More Opportunities for Flaws

The number of reported vulnerabilities found in open source software more than doubled in 2019 to almost 1,000, with projects such as Magento, GitLab, and Jenkins posting the largest increases year-over-year, according to a new research from security firm RiskSense.

The report, entitled " The Dark Reality of Open Source," states that in 2019 there were 968 CVEs assigned to vulnerabilities in open source software, up from 421 in 2018 - and 179 have been logged for the first three months of 2020. The reason for the increase, RiskSense believes, is that between 80% and 90% of all software currently in use has an open source component. And while more defects can be spotted because of this high level of use, it also means any vulnerability that has slipped through the cracks is widely shared, according to the report.

"While open source projects can rapidly go viral, so can their vulnerabilities," the report notes.

The report tracked the number of vulnerabilities reported from 2015 through the first quarter of 2020, but does not include Linus, Drupal or WordPress, which were analyzed separately in other reports.

Application Security is a Priority - the report is a reminder that application security is more important than ever and must remain a priority.

Slow Reporting Process - Other key findings include the long period of time it takes for open source vulnerabilities to be included in the U.S. National Vulnerability Database (NVD); that Jenkins and MySQL generate the most vulnerabilities; and that cross-site scripting and input validation are the most weaponized weaknesses. govinfosecurity.com

Protests Sweep Through Canada
'Defund the Police' - Looting Fears - Retail Under Microscope

'Defund the Police' Movement Spills into Canada
Sask. police chiefs, mayors say reducing enforcement is not as simple
as defunding police

'What causes crime ... these are issues that are beyond the scope of the police service,' says Regina mayor

Police chiefs and mayors in Saskatoon and Regina say defunding police services is not the best approach to reducing police enforcement in Saskatchewan communities, saying more provincial resources should be put into addressing social issues that contribute to high crime rates.

"The answer is not at this time in our community, given the levels of crime we're seeing and the levels of violence, to say that you need to do this by pulling money out of police," said Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark on Monday. "What we need to be doing is building a much better system to respond to those issues."

A petition calling for the defunding of the Regina Police Service had about 2,300 signatures late Monday afternoon. cbc.ca

Several downtown Vancouver businesses boarded up after U.S. violence, looting
Contractors pulled up onto the sidewalk outside a number of downtown Vancouver businesses last Wednesday to install plywood over windows and doors, and this time it had nothing to do with coronavirus closures. Vancouver's Nordstrom location has been temporarily closed and boarded up out of what the U.S. company is calling "an abundance of caution."

A solidarity rally was planned for Friday afternoon in Vancouver, but it doesn't appear Nordstrom's decision was made due to any kind of Vancouver-specific concern.

"We're paying close attention to potential gatherings that may take place in cities across Canada and the U.S. this week," Nordstrom Canada said in an email to CTV News. ctvnews.ca

Opinion: Blatant Racism in Toronto Stores Means I Now Only Shop Online
'I thought that trip to Bloor Street would be a reflection of all my hard work. I expected champagne to be poured! Spending $3,000 of your own hard-earned money on a bag is a huge deal. What did I get? No smile, a look like possibly I'm lost. No one wanted to help me. I wanted to walk out-this was supposed to be a celebratory experience, a treat to myself, and I felt like a suspect. thekit.ca

Saskatoon woman claims racial profiling after being told to leave Cabela's store

Black entrepreneurs want Canadian firms to 'put their money where their mouth is' to fight racism

Washington Post Opinion: Black Canadians are suffocating under a racist policing system, too

Canadian PM Trudeau defends decision to attend protest amid Covid-19 curbs
 

Canada's Retail Reopening
Contact Tracing Apps - Retail Headwinds

Majority of Canadians support mandatory contact tracing apps to contain COVID-19

Fewer support mandatory contact tracing for retail & grocery stores

In their new report, The Race To Trace: Security and Privacy of COVID-19 Contact Tracing Apps, the Cybersecure Policy Exchange surveyed 2,000 Canadians in mid-May and found:

• Majorities of Canadians support making contact tracing apps mandatory for the use of public services, like public transit (55%) and in workplaces (51%), though in both cases only one in four strongly support such an approach.

• Support is somewhat lower (46%) for retail or grocery stores making apps mandatory.

• In contrast, opposition to landlords or condominiums making contact tracing apps mandatory (45%) surpassed support (30%). newswire.ca

From on-call nurses to quarantined returns: Retailers face COVID-19 reinvention

If you attended Black Lives Matter protest, self-monitor for COVID-19

Patios, malls, salons able to reopen Friday in Ottawa and eastern Ontario

As pandemic hobbles retailers, HBC fights department store headwinds
 

Temps - Masks - Tests - Internal Lab - Social Distancing Amazon Invites NY Times in Warehouse To See Safety Measures What It Looks Like Inside an Amazon Warehouse Now

After months of being embattled over its response to the coronavirus, Amazon is working to convince the public that its workplaces - specifically, the warehouses where it stores everything from toys to hand sanitizer - are safe during the pandemic.

The giant internet retailer has started running television ads that show that its warehouse and delivery employees have masks and other protective gear. It has pushed out segments to local news stations touting its safety improvements. It has asked journalists to visit its warehouses to see for themselves.

Amazon is spreading its safety message after a period that Jeff Bezos, the company's chief executive, has called "the hardest time we've ever faced."

In hundreds of its facilities, workers became ill with Covid-19, and many blamed the company. At the height of its crisis, one Amazon executive said he quit over the firings of workers who had raised questions about workplace safety during the pandemic.

While Amazon has rolled out safety changes, many workers and officials said the measures were unevenly deployed and came too late.

But in recent weeks, workers said, some conditions inside the warehouses have improved. And the company, which was in emergency response mode in March and April, has resumed a more regular rhythm of business.

Amazon recently invited reporters into a fulfillment center in Kent, Wash., 20 miles south of Seattle, where the company is based. The New York Times agreed to tour the facility to see the changes that Amazon and many workers around the country had described.  Read more about Amazon's safety measures.

Walmart's Deal With ThredUP Helps Its E-Commerce Position