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Recession Woes: What People Steal

With the economy tanking, security pros see a spike in old-time thievery. And what do people steal in recessionary times? Cash, clothes, cigarettes, copper - pretty much everything. (Part three in a series: How to Manage Security in a Recession)

By Bill Brenner, Senior Editor

July 09, 2008 —

About this series: Smaller staff. Deflated security budgets. In-store thievery. When economic times are tough, these are the things security pros must contend with. In this ongoing series, CSOonline looks at ways to ensure the best security possible during a recession.

With online thievery all the rage these days, it's easy to forget security pros are still dealing with people who steal the old-fashioned way.

As the economy sinks under the weight of high gas prices and a busted mortgage market, security pros are seeing a spike in old-school thievery, be it employees pocketing cash from the register, customers stuffing gold watches into their coats or thieves making off with copper and other metals from industrial sites.

The trend is hardly surprising in tough economic times. But experts say it illustrates the need for companies to approach online and physical security as one big challenge instead of separate entities, and minimize losses by ensuring that staffing levels are adequate.

"It's typical for short-sighted retailers to cut staff when sales fall, but this creates opportunity for shoplifters and motivates disgruntled employees to steal," says Chris E. McGoey, a security consultant who maintains the Crime Doctor website and specializes in loss prevention strategies.

When Target is targeted
During economic downturns, opportunistic theft increases along with organized retail crime, says Brad Brekke, vice president of assets protection for the Minneapolis-based Target retail chain.

"We may see an increase in everyday necessity items being stolen, as well as popular items that are easily converted into cash," he says, declining to list the specific items.

Brekke's predecessor, King Rogers, currently head of loss prevention consultancy King Rogers International, says organized retail theft (the mob-like version, as distinct from the problem of lone shoplifters) is a constant problem whatever the economy's condition. But his experience is that the state of the economy does have an influence on how bad it is.

"Because of the 'risk vs. reward' nature of organized retail theft - less risk for stealing merchandise from a retailer than robberies or burglaries and a potential for greater monetary gain at the end of the day - it is easy for someone to gravitate toward stealing when they are down on their luck," he says. On the other hand, King adds, some consumers are less likely to buy more counterfeit or illegally diverted product during a recession because they have less cash to spend on non-essential items. Counterfeit goods tend to be more non-essential items, he says.