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wpalmer
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Posted:8/26/2009 9:29 AM |
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I posted this on my blog at http://retailnotes.wordpress.com/ today but thought I'd cross post here to get some comments and viewpoints from this group...
Tecnology and Loss Prevention: Friend or Foe?
What amazing times we live in these days! I’m blogging this post from 35,000 feet on a Delta flight with wireless internet service. In the past hour, I’ve responded to emails from Japan, UK, Canada, and France that came in overnight, rebooked a flight on Delta.com, sent four text messages to cell phones from my email, and taken care of paying some bills from my online banking account. I remember when a “powerful” personal computer used one 5.25″ floppy drive to run your application (only one at a time) and the other 5.25″ was your “hard drive.”
What impact is technology having on our industry and our efforts to battle fraud and reduce loss? Most of us would have a gut reaction that it is a positive impact. We could support that by citing the use of databases to track cases and share information; POS exception reporting that helps identify fraud at the register; digital CCTV systems that allow us to look-in on stores in real-time or review high risk transactions from the convenience of our computer screen; or the ability to integrate access control, alarm systems, CCTV, and other systems.
However, a contrarian might cite the use of the world-wide web to launch attacks on corporate websites or data; increased ease of sharing information between criminals about targets and security measures; the tremendous vulnerability that PCI non-compliance can have on an organization; the emergence of internet auction sites and their role in disposition of stolen goods; or the potential negative impact on shrinkage when data integrity is accidentally comprised with implementation of new equipment, systems, or technology platforms in our organizations.
What is your view of the impact of technology on our efforts for the good or the bad?
Walter
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Sennewald
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Posted:8/26/2009 7:30 PM |
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Excellent post, Walter, and challenging question.
My response, as an aging professional: it's good.
I was here when CCTV came on the scene, an awesome new technology. It proved a wonderful tool in internal investigations and generally preventing losses in our stores.
I was here when technology brought the computerized POS terminals, replacing our standard NCR registers, and it kind of scared us at first, because it was new, but it proved, with all it's applications, another effective tool for tracking internal thefts.
I was here when EAS was introduced. It proved to be yet another tool to help us reduce inventory shrink.
Hence, all this new and ever accelerating technology will directly or indirectly provide us with yet more tools to do our jobs in Security/Loss Prevention!
Thanks for asking.
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Baillie
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Posted:8/27/2009 7:32 AM |
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Another great post Walter. Like Chuck, I seen many "new" technological advances hit the market. I've always taken the initiative to learn everything I could and embrace new products - even dragging some of my retail security partners into the 21st century. I was on the cutting edge of wireless CCTV development and use. Those were exciting times for me.I can't wait to see what the future holds.
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John Christman
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Posted:8/29/2009 7:37 AM |
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Totally agree with Chuck & Curt. I recall writing reports with a typewriter - manual at that! Recall first use of pagers and then "walkie-talkies". And car phones - what a deal! Ain't progress great!! Now we have face recognition software, great exception reporting tools (remember Eastbourne?) and lots of other great stuff. Can't wait to see what the future holds. With LERPnet and the Internet (remote monitoring etc) great things in store for our business.
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Larry Senn
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Posted:9/08/2009 9:26 AM |
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I am so old I remember writing up case reports using carbon paper. Great Post Walter! Larry
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jrwilder
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Posted:9/08/2009 9:11 PM |
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The right Technology has made work easier. The days without computers and typewriters are gone and the use of CCTV, Laptops, and EAS systems are just some of the tools that make our jobs so much better.Technology is great!
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bryanstrawser
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Posted:9/17/2009 9:36 PM |
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Posted By Larry Senn on 9/08/2009 9:26 AM
I am so old I remember writing up case reports using carbon paper. Great Post Walter! Larry
I'm not that old but I still remember doing this ;-)
Bryan
My comments and posts represent my own opinion. They may or may not be reflective of my employer's opinions. |
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Larry Senn
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Posted:9/18/2009 5:49 AM |
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I realized how bad it was when I found myself explaining to a member of my staff what carbon paper was! LS
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John Christman
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Posted:9/18/2009 8:46 AM |
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Not to belabor the point, but I remember, when lots of copies were needed, cutting stencils to produce copies on mimeograph machines. I can also remember recorders which used flat discs and then thin wire going from reel to reel. Now that's old!
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kudos202
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Posted:3/12/2010 1:58 AM |
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Wow i remember the reel to reel tapes on the end of day computers, downloading the days sales figures ETC took two hours...
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