Uncategorized — Page 60

Don’t Get Tangled in Its Web

February 25, 2013 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Most of the experienced shoplifters and professional thieves are aware that EAS tags are kept inside product packaging. It is the single biggest reason why employees find discarded packages; the shoplifters were attempting to eliminate the EAS tags. What if there were retail anti theft devices that kept the product inside the package until it was purchased?

Well, there is. Alpha Security makes the Alpha Spider Wrap. It is a series of bands that interlock around a box or other packaging that is susceptible to theft. Hardware stores use them extensively for power tools.

That’s where I first stumbled across them. They have many more applications than just big boxes of power tools though. Small boxes of electronics or gaming systems can also use them. Alpha Security Alpha Spider Wraps provide the visual deterrent needed to prevent shoplifting by most of the common shoplifting groups. The retail anti theft devices is also an audible alarm within themselves- that is useful in deterring the rest of the more accomplished shoplifters. The audible alarm sounds if the Alpha Spider Wrap is tampered with.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store for Alpha 2Alarm, Alpha 3Alarm, Alpha Fashion2, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Shark Tag, Alpha Spider Wrap and other retail anti-theft devices from Alpha Security to use in conjunction with your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system that can help you prevent shoplifting in your business.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Alpha Fashion2, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Shark Tag, Alpha Spider Wrap, Fashion2, Jewel Lok, Nano Gate, Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices, Shark Tag, Spider Wrap

Math – Employee Background Checks

February 25, 2013 by Staff Editor

I have worked with numerous cases of employee dishonesty, theft, and fraud for many years. It was always highly unusual if the case implicated a member of management. Statistically, the majority of those employees implicated were working in a non-management capacity. Obviously I gained this experience not when working at a background check company.

Most of the commotion centers around the fact that managers are expected to operate within a different level of trust and professionalism. That’s the how and the why they are elevated to management in the first place. Another significant reason is simply that a much smaller percentage of managers are actually committing theft and fraud.

Oddly enough, I see much more emphasis placed on doing drug tests and background checks for management positions from either in-house promotions or external hires. It seems counter-productive to run background checks on these individuals while ignoring the statistics. The lack of complete background checks being run for non-management employees is not wise and potentially extremely costly.

One could question the wisdom of the additional costs incurred by running checks on everyone. I question the risk of dollars lost from even a single case of employee dishonesty – it can be enormous and potentially debilitating to a company.

I have personally witnessed employee theft cases that involved thousands of dollars, some even tens of thousands. Criminal background checks can reduce or prevent these types of losses.

When an employer runs a consistent check on all employees, the odds of keeping the bad ones out before they can be considered for management is greatly increased. And that is where processing criminal background checks through a background check company can help tremendously.

For more information on background check experts, background checks, criminal background checks, employee background checks or pre employment screening contact us at the background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: background check company, background check experts, Background checks, criminal background check, employee background checks, pre employment screening

Abusive Employees – Security Tags on Clothes

February 22, 2013 by Staff Editor

Protecting your stores from shoplifters is not the only reason for clothing security. Procedures must also be in place to dissuade employees from taking advantage of the system and stealing your merchandise.

One instance that comes to mind involved a very well-liked manager. Now perhaps I should begin by saying that we used Checkpoint tags for our clothing security. We were very good at making sure the appropriate type and quantity of security tags on clothes were in place. The problem wasn’t with the Checkpoint tags.

The problem was the indiscriminate use of our detachers. We used hand held detachers in the store for several very legitimate reasons, but we had become careless. It was not uncommon to have our detachers anywhere in the store with almost unlimited access.

We didn’t give much thought to controlling the access of the detachers until we started noticing one of our managers frequently wearing some of our newer clothing lines. More than one eyebrow was raised upon seeing him parading around the store in expensive new duds in light of the fact that he habitually complained about how little money he had.

He was able to remove any of the clothing security tags he wanted with his unlimited access to a detacher and no system of checks and balances in place. He simply changed clothes in the dressing room; either by layering the clothing under his own, or by entirely changing clothes when the shifts changed.

Because we failed to manage his freedom with a detacher, the security tags on clothes were ineffective. A system of checks and balances would have eliminated the opportunity for him to steal.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase the clothing alarm, clothing security tags or Electronic Article Surveillance (or EAS system).

For more information on how Checkpoint tags, clothing security, clothing alarm, or clothing security tags can work with your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system contact us at security tags on clothes or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Checkpoint tags, clothing alarm, Clothing Security, clothing security tags, security tags on clothes

Young Brides Don’t Believe in Employee Theft

February 18, 2013 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I remember the times when my husband of 32 years first shared his career goals with me. He wanted to be a police officer initially and I was proud to stand behind him and had promised myself to be understanding of his crazy work schedule and the bizarre things he would encounter during the days and nights while being on duty. But after receiving his degree in Criminal Justice – Private Security Administration and Management, he turned his mind to discovering internal theft and conducting employee theft investigations .

I was raised to put in an honest day of work with your employer and even bringing a pencil home from work could be considered employee theft . I could simply not believe that anyone would be stealing from their employer and I was truly wondering what he was going to be doing each day with his time. Since employee theft was a foreign concept to me, I didn’t realize at first how busy he would actually be during his working hours.

His days consisted of performing loss prevention audits, conducting training sessions for associates of all levels and conducting employee theft investigations. I simply could not believe how many internal theft cases he was dealing with day in and day out.

People would be risking their jobs to steal money from the cash drawers, steal merchandise, commit time theft, etc. It certainly kept him busy and at the dinner table we always had a very interesting subject to discuss – his day at the office.

For more information on employee theft , employee theft investigation or internal theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: employee theft, employee theft investigation, internal theft

What a Mess – Alpha Jewel Lok to the Rescue

February 18, 2013 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I went to the local big box last week to find a pair of earrings for a holiday party. Because I needed to match a specific outfit, I didn’t have a lot of wiggle room with what I could wear. As a Loss Prevention professional, I realized that the store didn’t appear to be deploying retail anti-theft devices.

It was so frustrating because this particular store had been completely ransacked in their fashion jewelry department. There were earrings missing, or lying on the ground in complete disarray. Just when I would spy a pair I really liked, there would be something wrong with them. With out a doubt, it would be the only pair like that on the rounder, too!

Eventually, I just ended up leaving without making a purchase. It was frustrating as a customer to have such rotten luck finding what I needed. It was even more frustrating having worked in retail security and knowing that Alpha Security makes a whole range of Alpha Jewel Loks to prevent this sort of thing from happening.

Alpha Jewel Loks attach to the actual product, not the jewelry cards. This makes them harder to steal because the shoplifters can’t detach the security tags. It also makes it easier for the stores to keep their merchandise together and undamaged.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Roses and Criminal Background Checks

February 18, 2013 by Staff Editor

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” is a commonly quoted phrase from a dialogue in William Shakespeare‘s play Romeo and Juliet, in which Juliet argues that the names of things do not matter, only what things are.Juliet was a young and extremely emotional teenager who expresses rather immature thinking, although it is expressed quite eloquently by Shakespeare in this classic tale of young love gone awry.

Perhaps this phrase is true when it pertains to roses; however, Juliet didn’t work for a background check company. Any reputable, experienced background checks expert will tell you that when it comes to background checks and pre-employment screening, the names of people do matter. Because a name gives a history and provides a portrait to reveal the real person behind the application and/or interview, it is essential that a wise employer have this critical information to inform his hiring decisions.

I worked a rather large internal case a few years back; we actually flew in our corporate Loss Prevention managers to help us resolve all the issues created by names. One of the first things these managers did was run a name and address verification on the employee in question. It was a similar protocol to what they followed when they had previously worked for a background check company to provide criminal background checks.

The amount of information pulled was staggering. It listed every place this employee had lived for the last ten years, including other occupants living at the same address. To our surprise, this employee had been living with another one of the company employees. Not only was this a clear policy violation, but it also opened a new gateway into the investigation.

These guys were truly background check experts. The criminal background checks they gave us introduced another employee critical to the investigation that we would have most likely overlooked and lost countless more dollars in the process of identifying the culprits. Based on this new information, we were able to investigate and resolve close to $100,000 in losses over the previous five years that these two thieves had been employed at our company. Had we done this sort of pre-employment screening to begin with, these employees would never have been hired to begin with.

For more information on background check experts, background checks, criminal background checks, employee background checks or pre-employment screening or to learn more about counteracting employee theft and shoplifting, please contact us at the background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: background check company, background check experts, Background checks, criminal background check, employee background checks

Problematic Fitting Rooms – Clothing Security

February 16, 2013 by Staff Editor

One of the most problematic areas of clothing security is the fitting rooms. Fitting rooms attract different types of theft. There are the opportunists who don’t plan to steal, but find it irresistible to leave without taking an extra item or two which they have not paid for when tempted with a cluttered fitting room and no watchful eyes to do a piece count.

There are the amateurs who have already decided to steal a piece of clothing, but are too nervous to do it on the sales floor. They will wait for hours in a fitting room until they are the only ones left. They will also take a chance with clothing security tags. Some have even brought a pair of wire cutters into the dressing room to attempt hacking off the pin of a clothing security tag.

I have spent countless hours brainstorming security measures specifically for that area of the store. The challenge of monitoring a fitting room while protecting the privacy of a customer creates an extremely difficult task at best. Security tags on clothes can make a huge difference when the shoplifter is presented with the temptations inherent in the fitting room.

The best method to protect a fitting room from theft is to keep the fitting rooms monitored. Installing locks is a great suggestion; however, the retailer can possibly lose a sale with the potential service issues involved if a customer can’t quickly locate an employee to unlock the door.

A better option is using checkpoint tags whenever possible. Shoplifters usually bypass stealing when faced with the prospect of having to remove the security tags on clothes. Most shoplifters do not want to run the risk of setting off the clothing alarm when a Checkpoint tag is still attached.

To purchase the clothing alarm, clothing security tags and/or the Electronic Article Surveillance (or Loss Prevention Store. Your fitting rooms will stand a better chance of being theft-free with these simple additions to your clothing security.

For more information about EAS system) contact us at security tags on clothes or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Checkpoint tags, clothing alarm, Clothing Security, clothing security tags, security tags on clothes

Internal Theft Solved by Baiting

February 11, 2013 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

When we talk about baiting as it relates to employee theft or an employee theft investigation, we are not talking about catching fish that live in the streams or oceans. However, bait different from a live worm or a fly can be used when trying to uncover internal theft and trying to hook the responsible party.

Years ago my husband was hired by a local business after guests had reported that they were missing cash and jewelry from their rooms. And he knew just what to do. Instead of accompanying him on a fishing trip on a rocky boat, I was able to spend time with him at a beautiful hotel while he was fishing for the culprit who was responsible for the internal theft.

After having checked in, he installed a concealed camera in the room, we changed into beach wear and he asked me to count out $150 in various denominations after he had turned on the camera. We then put the money into my wallet which we hid in one of the drawers of the dresser. Then we left for the pool.

After a few hours in the sun, we returned back to the room. It was all clean and properly made up. My husband had not yet turned off the camera and he asked me to open my wallet and count out the money in front of the camera.

I was almost giddy when I counted the money; although I had experience with counting money acquired when being a bank teller, I had to count the dollar bills multiple times. Sure enough, a $20 bill was missing. A regular hotel guest may have never noticed that the money was missing.

My husband had turned into full camera, rewound it and watched the tape to find the culprit responsible for the employee theft.

For more information on employee theft , employee theft investigation or internal theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: employee theft, employee theft investigation, internal theft

Time is On My Side, Sometimes – Alpha 3 Alarm

February 11, 2013 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

When you are trying to prevent shoplifting, it is equal parts effective customer service, and consistent use of retail anti theft devices.

It doesn’t matter if you have the most attentive employees who are spot on at providing the best possible service imaginable. At some point, your associates have to stop engaging a shoplifter and attend to other tasks.

I know. I have spent countless hours watching shoplifters. One time I spent thirty minutes watching and “cleaning” the fitting room, because there was a girl inside, who was going to steal a shirt, and kept checking to see if I left.

Eventually, I had to go attend to another managerial issue that could not wait. Sure enough, the girl took the shirt.

Not only did I lose the shirt, but I also lost the thirty minutes of productivity (and a bit of my ego) in the process.

This is a prime example of how retail anti theft devices pick up where customer service lets off. Alpha Security even makes different levels of retail anti theft devices based on what you need.

I personally like the Alpha Security Alpha 3 Alarm. It activates at the door if it is not removed. It also activates if someone tries to remove it without the proper detacher. The best part is the Alpha 3 Alarm generates an independent audible alarm. That means the alarm will sound from the product as it leaves the store- not just sounding an alarm at the exit doors.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: 3 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha Fashion2, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Shark Tag, Alpha Spider Wrap, Fashion2, Jewel Lok, Nano Gate, Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices, Shark Tag, Spider Wrap

Preventing Possible Theft by using Pre-Employment Screening

February 11, 2013 by Staff Editor

When thinking about conducting pre-employment employee background checks, one seldom considers how this step can prevent internal theft. I had an employee theft issue a few years ago with a group of associates who were stealing from our company. The losses we encountered could have been prevented if we had more rigorous pre-employment screening procedures in place.

The scam worked like this: one associate would make purchases when his friend was working the customer service desk. This was all within policy – what wasn’t within policy was the additional merchandise that was not rung up – thousands of dollars of merchandise. He confessed that the stolen merchandise was all being shipped back to his native country when we questioned him.

We could not locate the other three associates involved when we finished questioning the first employee. They simply walked out of the store while we questioned the first associate. When we took the case to our local law enforcement, it became clear that the employees we had hired used fake IDs with stolen information. We have yet to find our former employees.

Because we are not background check experts, we did not catch the discrepancy when these individuals applied for jobs. If we had possessed the foresight to take this simple and inexpensive step in the hiring process, we would have saved thousands of dollars in stolen merchandise and valuable resources in tracking down the thieves. Background check experts would have done what we could not.

Employee background checks are not about prior convictions only. It is the way that pre-employment screening is equipped to do an adequate job and confirm whether or not the person you are considering hiring is EXACTLY who he or she presents himself to be.

For more information on background check experts, background checks, criminal background checks, employee background checks or pre employment screening contact us at background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: background check company, background check experts, Background checks, criminal background check, employee background checks, pre employment screening