29Jun
“More Consumers, Workers Shoplift as Economy Slows”
USA Today (06/19/08) ; Dugas, Christine
Many retail chains report an increase in shoplifting, which experts blame on the struggling economy. A recent survey showed that 74 percent of retailers believed that shoplifting increased from 2006 to 2007. Retail theft costs companies approximately $40.5 billion a year, with the losses passed on to consumers through raised prices. Police said that shoplifters have historically been people attempting to fuel a drug habit, a trend that has changed due to the poor economy. Now, more everyday items are being stolen, including groceries. The economic downturn also forced many companies to reduce the number of employees. With fewer sales clerks watching shoppers walk the aisles, it is easier for thieves to steal merchandise. The rise in retail thefts is also being blamed on the presence of organized crime, which account for up to $30 billion in losses every year, according to the FBI. These rings of professional thieves can easily move stolen items through the Internet, where consumers go to look for deals. Companies must also deal with employee theft, which makes up almost half of company losses. The FBI recently joined with the retail industry to openly share information in an effort to curb organized retail theft.
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20Jun
El Defensor Chieftain (NM) (06/18/08) ; Cronce, Evelyn
The shooters at Columbine High School and Virginia Tech prepared for their attacks in the same way that terrorists plot theirs, according to Rudy Holm, protective security advisor for the Department of Homeland Security. Holm said there are seven signs of terrorism and people who have detected these signs and reported them to their local police have averted 25 school shootings in the nation in the past year. The seven signs of a likely terrorist include someone who is carrying out surveillance, obtaining data, testing security, gathering supplies, looking suspicious, performing a trial run, and ultimately getting everything ready. Those plotting an attack on a school typically take time to examine the location and carry out surveillance. They may be watching from a distance with cameras or binoculars. They generally have maps or diagrams of the site and use them to locate security cameras, evacuation routes, or crowded spots. Someone who seems out of place may be asking questions such as: “Do you see police around here a lot?” or “Are those lights always on?” Someone planning a school attack will also test security by pulling fire alarms to observe the flow of traffic, how long it takes emergency workers to respond, and how students and employees react. There have also been instances where plotters continually triggered school alarms until police no longer go to the scene because they believe the alarm system is broken. Plotters may also practice test runs, perhaps leaving a package somewhere on the site. If someone reports a package that turns out to be harmless, police and school personnel should note where the package was left in case it was part of a trial run.
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13Jun
“Benefits of Master Planning”
Security Management (06/08) Vol. 52, No. 6, P. 95 ; Anderson, Teresa
Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., recently devised a master security plan for the campus. A half-dozen leading stakeholders got involved with the plan for the 8,700-member university: information-technology security, physical security, compliance, privacy, health sciences, and general counsel. One of the plan’s top objectives was helping incorporate security into the day-to-day operations at the campus. Access control, fire alarms, CCTV, and different temperature and humidity sensors situated in the labs are all continuously tracked by a group of private security officers. Residence halls have a couple of security layers, with the main doors of the buildings open all week during certain hours of the day. After hours, the doors remain locked so that just residents can enter. Creighton students currently carry a combined ID and access control card. The HID iCLASS access control cards include a magnetic stripe and proximity feature, which allow students to use the parking garages and enter numerous other campus facilities, and also function as a photo ID.
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06Jun
“Shoplifting Ring Pocketed Millions Worth of Products”
San Francisco Chronicle (06/06/08) ; Fimrite, Peter
A joint task force of federal agents and San Jose police officers arrested 17 alleged members of organized crime families for their suspected involvement in a shoplifting ring. Authorities say that the Le and Vo crime families employed hundreds of shoplifters to steal from retail stores. The crime families paid the thieves 25 percent of retail value for the stolen goods, then resold the products on the secondary market. Police began investigating the multi-million dollar shoplifting ring after Safeway alerted authorities that its stores were being victimized by teams of shoplifters. Undercover officers infiltrated the shoplifting teams, learning about the operation and discovering the location of storage warehouses. Police recovered $5.5 in stolen property during the series of raids, as well as $140,000 in cash, gold bars, and diamonds. The alleged ringleaders of the operation were charged with federal money laundering and interstate transportation of stolen goods, crimes that carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. Retail theft costs as much as $5 billion a year in California, with the state losing an estimated $375 million in sales tax revenue a year as a result.
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06Jun
“Unmarked Chopper Patrols New York City From Above”
Associated Press (05/23/08) ; Hays, Tom
The New York Police Department is acquiring more advanced technology for its counterterrorism operations. One of its newest additions is an unmarked helicopter equipped with high-tech surveillance and tracking tools powerful enough to zoom in on a license plate number or a pedestrian’s face. A high-powered robotic camera gives the helicopter its observation capability. The camera features infrared night-vision capabilities and a satellite navigation system that lets police automatically zero in on an area by typing in the address on a computer keyboard. The surveillance system can send live footage to police command centers down below or to wireless gadgets that officers are carrying. While hovering over Manhattan, the helicopter was able to take a detailed picture of aircraft waiting to depart from LaGuardia Airport and to assess jet fuel lines at Kennedy International Airport, both in Queens. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said that there are not any other law enforcement agencies in the country with “anything that comes close” to the $10 million surveillance helicopter. The department is also investing millions of dollar elsewhere, as it plans on tightening security in the business district in downtown Manhattan by installing closed-circuit television cameras and license-plate readers on bridges, tunnels, and other entrances to the city. It is also using radiation monitors to detect dirty bombs, either asking officers to wear them on their belts, or placing them in cars and helicopters.
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