Latest news with #Auror
Daily Mirror
8 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Facial recognition 'should be used more to catch thieves and thugs'
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has said facial recognition is 'really important for policing' and said she would be looking at ways to roll it out 'in a proper framework' Facial recognition tech should be used more widely to tackle shoplifting and anti-social behaviour, the Home Secretary says. Yvette Cooper has urged firms to think about tracking prolific shoplifters using a national database. Hundreds of big-name stores, including Boots, Morrisons, M&S and Greggs, capture criminals' images and details, including their vehicle registrations, on a database named Auror. The information can be shared with other retailers and police, and used to ban and prosecute thieves. It is estimated that 10% of shoplifters carry out 74% of UK thefts. Ms Cooper said: "We do want more retailers working together on schemes like this so that we can have partnerships tackling that crime." She also said the Home Office is investigating ways to get more facial recognition cameras onto high streets. And the Home Secretary continued: "Too often people have been working separately in silos, and this sort of crime has been treated as low level. "It's not. It has a huge impact on local economies and on that sense of safety at the heart of communities." At the moment experts believe that just five per cent of shop thefts are reported to police. Ben McDonald of Morrisons said the Auror software, used by 98% of retailers in New Zealand where it was developed, was a "game-changer". The database captures images and details about offenders, including vehicle registrations, and allows them to be shared directly between stores and police. This wealth of information can be used to prosecute thieves and ban them from stores after retail crime hit a record level last year. It is estimated that a prolific 10% of shoplifters are responsible for 74% of thefts in the UK - making identifying them especially important. The company claims that streamlining investigations meant forces in New Zealand have been able to hire more than 450 officers in the past seven years. Earlier this year Devon and Cornwall became the first force to partner with the software firm. Superintendent Emma Butler-Jones said the network had "revolutionised" the way retail crime is tackled in the area. Asked whether forces across England and Wales should follow the lead of Croydon in South London and install permanent facial recognition cameras, Ms Cooper this kit is "really important for policing". She said: "There's more scope for using facial recognition more widely, and we're going to set out more ways in which that can be done in a proper framework. We want more retailers working together on schemes like this." Ms Cooper said shoplifting "has a huge impact on local economies and communities". She has also told police chiefs she wants patrols ramped up in 500 English and Welsh town and city centre trouble spots. She challenged police commissioners to draw up plans to tackle rising anti-social behaviour over the summer holidays. The blitz will see more targeted work to ban frequent offenders from hotspots. Ms Cooper has vowed that by August, every neighbourhood will have a named officer who residents will know to contact, and problem areas must be patrolled. Labour has vowed to recruit an additional 13,000 neighbourhood officers by 2029. Ms Cooper said: 'It's time to turn this round, that's why I have called on police forces and councils alike to work together to deliver a summer blitz on town centre crime to send a clear message to those people who bring misery to our towns that their crimes will no longer go unpunished. 'The fact that 500 towns have signed up shows the strength of feeling on this issue."
Times
15 hours ago
- Business
- Times
Home secretary urges stores to use new crime-reporting platform
The images and details of prolific shoplifters are being collected and shared by major retailers on the first national database to tackle the crime. Marks & Spencer, Boots, Morrisons, Greggs, BP and Travis Perkins are among the retailers using a new crime intelligence reporting platform created by a New Zealand software company. Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, urged more retailers to use the software as she launched a three-month policing blitz that will target antisocial behaviour in 500 town centres across England and Wales. She called on police forces to use live facial recognition to enforce banning orders on individuals responsible for the worst antisocial behaviour. The Metropolitan Police recently installed permanent live facial recognition cameras to catch wanted criminals in Croydon, south London. Shared intelligence collected by the Auror platform has revealed that 10 per cent of offenders reported by UK retailers account for 72 per cent of all shoplifting offences. Paul Fagg, who served as a police officer before leading Auror's law enforcement partnerships in the UK, said the platform acted as a 'conduit between retailer and policing' by sharing information, CCTV and other evidence between retailers, alerting them to prolific offenders and helping to enforce banning orders on the worst of them. In addition to acting as a preventative tool, Fagg said, the shared intelligence helped to close the gap between the vast number of shoplifting offences recorded by retailers and the minority that are investigated by police. Yvette Cooper visited Derby County FC's Pride Park stadium to launch the Safer Streets summer initiative PHIL BARNETT/PA The latest survey by the British Retail Consortium reported that 20 million shoplifting offences were committed in the past year. While there has been a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of offences recorded by the police to 516,971, these make up only 2.5 per cent of all thefts. Once there is enough evidence that an individual is a prolific shoplifter, the firm then passes the information to the relevant police force to investigate. This overcomes the barrier retailers faced before when reporting thefts to the police. Fagg said retailers were not reporting most thefts to the police because they faced 'pushback' from forces that saw it as a burden to triage the crime. Auror carries out the triaging process by sending on details of only the most prolific offenders and individuals with sufficient evidence to police, maximising the prospect of success. It saves police time by taking away the need for officers to visit stores to collect evidence or interview witnesses because the evidence is collected on the platform. • Police 'forced to deprioritise phone thefts and shoplifting' Superintendent Emma Butler-Jones, of Devon and Cornwall police, said the platform had 'revolutionised how we tackle business crime' in their area. The force's charge rate for shoplifting offences reported through the platform were 7 per cent higher than crimes reported through more traditional means. Crime reports are provided to police officers an average of 8.5 times quicker, which means the force can accelerate their investigations. Auror is now used by 98 per cent of retailers in New Zealand, where the efficiency savings made by the platform freed up enough money to recruit an additional 451 police officers. The crime reporting platform is also used by 75 per cent of retailers in Australia. Auror does not use live facial recognition on its platform. Instead, it uses retrospective facial recognition to match multiple CCTV images of the same individual reported on the platform. Cooper said: 'We do want more retailers, more organisations [involved in] schemes like this, so that we can have that partnership, so that you're tackling the crime but also getting the neighborhood policing reassurance in local communities,' Cooper said. 'I think this hasn't happened for too long. Too often people have been working separately, in silos, and this sort of crime has been treated as low level. It's not. It has a huge impact on local economies and on that sense of safety at the heart of communities.' Backing police forces to make greater use of live facial recognition software, which has so far only been used by the Met and South Wales police, Cooper said: 'Facial recognition is a really important tool for policing to be able to use, to identify criminals, looking at the CCTV. We do think there is more scope for using facial recognition more widely and we're going to set out more ways in which that can be done as part of a proper framework.' Cooper was speaking on a visit to Pride Park, the home of Derby County FC, to launch her 'Safer Streets Summer Initiative', a blitz that will run in 500 city and town centres over the next three months with increased police patrols and additional enforcement to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour. Each town centre that will benefit from the increased patrols has submitted a bespoke action plan to the Home Office on how they plan to tackle the specific antisocial behaviour problems in their area. Many are working in partnership with their local football club to divert youngsters away from antisocial behaviour. Bristol City has partnered with Morrisons to provide free 'turn up and play' sessions for youngsters who may be 'intimidating' elderly customers at supermarkets in the city through antisocial behaviour such as hanging out in groups outside the stores. Ben McDonald, head of the corporate protection team at Morrisons, said antisocial behaviour was a 'gateway offence' to more serious crime including shoplifting. He said: 'If you can take youths away from that type of offending into something else and bridge that gap where they've got employment, got a job and got responsibilities, you take them out of crime.'
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Currys unveils major safety spend to protect staff, kerb retail crime
Currys, a British omnichannel technology retailer, has unveiled its most significant annual investment in store safety measures to date reaffirming its focus on staff security. The move is aimed at protecting employees and discouraging retail theft. The announcement coincides with the company's observance of 'Safety Week' for its store personnel throughout the UK. It follows a report from British Retail Consortium which revealed reveal that incidents of violence and abuse against retail staff surged to more than 2,000 per day in fiscal year 2023-24, compared to 1,300 daily occurrences the previous year. The retailer is introducing an array of new technologies and safety protocols as part of this extensive investment in safety. Upgrades include enhanced Public Display Monitors in stores deemed high-risk, experimentation with novel product security measures, and a commitment to better intelligence gathering and analysis. Additionally, there will be a heightened focus on security personnel and surveillance systems. Currys is piloting the use of staff headsets in select locations, with a full rollout expected by the end of May this year. These devices enable staff to communicate more effectively on the sales floor, enhancing their sense of security, particularly when dealing with shoplifters. Moreover, this technology also improves customer service by allowing shoppers to summon assistance through a button at the entrance that alerts staff via their headsets, notes the company. Currys has also partnered with Auror for the implementation of a crime reporting software platform that streamlines crime reporting and increases its precision. The software facilitates secure information sharing about crimes and suspects among stores. By correlating data on offenses nationwide, it not only equips store employees with knowledge of current threats but also supports law enforcement efforts to make shopping environments safer. Currently undergoing trials in two regions, there are plans to expand this platform across all stores early next month. To intensify product security across its outlets, the retailer will implement a data-driven strategy to balance theft risks against customer engagement. One notable area of investment is the enhancement of laptop display stand security across all Currys stores. The introduction of new laptop clamps aims to deter theft without detracting from the customer experience. Preliminary tests have shown promising results in decreasing aggressive thefts, with a broader deployment scheduled for next week, said the company. Currys COO Lindsay Haselhurst said: 'UK retail crime statistics make for difficult reading, as incidents of shoplifting and aggression against retail workers continue to climb. These are not victimless crimes; the worst cases leave colleagues and customers injured and traumatised. 'That's why I'm really pleased to roll out a number of new programmes to increase colleague and product security in our stores, and welcome the new Crime and Policing Bill legislation. However, we know there is much more to be done and this must be a collaborative effort with all involved, including local police forces and government.' Recently, supermarket chain Asda has initiated a trial of live facial recognition technology across five of its stores in Greater Manchester, England, UK. "Currys unveils major safety spend to protect staff, kerb retail crime" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
