Checking an individual's identity is a challenge for the retail sector, yet it is increasingly important as consumer fears grow around identity theft while organisations strive to improve business efficiency and customer service.
Featuring a case study speaker, Experian will address how electronic ID verification can help retailers:

• Increase genuine customer acquisition and revenue opportunities
• Improve straight-through processing for a smoother customer experience
• Prevent revenue loss through charge-backs
• Reduce costs associated with fraud
• Comply with AML and KYC regulations
• Confidently support the sale of age-restricted goods

Walmart’s director of Asset Protection Systems Brand Elverston will give an exclusive overview of Walmart’s Asset Protection structure and strategy including its approach to:

• Organized retail crime
• The concept of both fusing and maximizing available assets such as CCTV, EAS, biometrics, etc.
• The need for retail Asset Protection/Loss Prevention to pursue new technologies and to move away from mechanical gadgets to secure merchandise.
• Focus and importance of mission alignment with Operations

Brand L. Elverston, Director, Asset Protection Systems and Analysis, Walmart

The presentation will include the road map Wilkinson has followed in introducing a new security tool across the estate, not used before by any retailer.

• A history about the security of cash at the till point and how Wilkinson has evolved to the introduction of the new tool.
• The benefits that Wilkinson foresees, and how we measure those benefits.
• Where next, new technology to advance the CCI’s to next stage in the automation of the cash security and audit.

Mick Phipps, Head of Loss Prevention, Wilkinson

Jane Titley, Head of Loss Prevention for Europe at Claire’s Accessories, will outline her experiences with successfully deploying a loss prevention forensic analysis solution. The presentation will focus on several key areas; from building a strong business case for investment, through to delivering exceptional ROI back to the business by driving down internal fraud and increasing procedural compliance.

Jane Titley, Head of Loss Prevention, Europe, Claire’s Accessories

The UK’s largest health and beauty retailers are joining forces to combat fraud and theft from their stores and reduce violent attacks against their front line staff.

The Health, Beauty and Pharmacy (HB&P) Loss Prevention Forum is modelling itself upon the success of the Retail Loss Prevention Fashion Forum. It has been set up to tackle generic crime, but more specifically the unique losses felt by the High Street’s cosmetics and drug prescribing retailers including protection of small, high value beauty products, counterfeit goods, burglaries and the welfare of vulnerable staff involved in the administration of needle exchange programmes.

Paul Hollingworth Head of Loss Prevention for the Body Shop in the UK will present the aims and objectives of the Forum for 2010 and beyond and urge those other retailers with health, beauty and pharmacy in their product ranges to be part of that new voice by joining the Forum.

Paul Hollingworth Head of Loss Prevention UK, The Body Shop and member of the HB&P Loss Prevention Forum

In today’s demanding environment it’s essential to continually search for ways to gain competitive edge. One way in which Wickes gain an advantage is through independent stock counts performed by Orridge for a range of 6,000+ products. In doing so it provides an up-to-date stock file and insight into areas of potential weakness, not only in-store but within the entire supply chain for a portfolio of over 190 outlets. Wickes inventory is crucial to delivering the stockloss strategy to which provides a pivotal role in delivering confidence in stock cycles, ensuring shrinkage reduction actions that can be aligned with assurance.     

Phil Smith, Loss Prevention Manager, Wickes Building Supplies Ltd

Best Buy culture and why it is so important to have culture built into your LP and fraud strategy

Mike Finch, Head of Asset Protection, Best Buy

Steve Hearn –Group Head of Risk, Jaeger and KhuramKirmani–CEO IDM Software Ltd

Lifestyle Sports which has more than 90 stores in the Republic of Ireland and the Czech Republic wanted to up its game on staff investigations, but did not want to dramatically increase its loss prevention budget. Head of Loss Prevention John Murphy will discuss how a new non-confrontational interview technique - extensively used in the US since 1982 – got the strategy off to a flying start and paid for itself the first time it was used. John will be joined by Wicklander-Zulawski UK who will demonstrate some of the techniques that make the process more of a conversation than a confrontation.

John Murphy, Head of Loss Prevention, Lifestyle Sports

Scott Bixby, Polo Ralph Lauren's senior director for Asset Prevention for Europe and Asia discusses how staff involvement and training enhances profit protection within the retail environment. He will look at:

1) How employees can assist LP.
2) Why employee steal?
3) Training techniques

Scott Bixby, Sr. Director Asset Protection Europe & Asia Polo Ralph Lauren

Online Fraud: Cardholder Not Present (CNP) fraud prevention, online and multi channel fraud

John will be looking at who really pays for CNP fraud and challenging whether there is a solution to the current approach

Andy will then get into the detail of the Sainsbury's experience...

• Outline who Sainsbury's is and why we moved into the non-food online arena
• Discuss how Sainsbury's set up the fraud screening services, including a broad outline of our particular business needs
• Discuss some of the specific fraud screening techniques used within Sainsbury's
• Learning's to date, including highlighting levels of fraud as the new boy on the block, settling down now to a more traditional fraud levels
• Collaborative approach to new and emerging trends within fraud
• Andy will then draw the session to close with a summary of their progress to date, next steps and longer terms goals.

Pritesh Patel, Consultant, Client and Technical Services, CyberSource CyberSource and Alisdair Faulkner, Chief Products Officer, ThreatMetrix

Tesco.com has placed increased focus on its fraud prevention methods over the last two years. Now, as the business evolves, and branches into new markets such as clothing and entertainment, fraud prevention is a key part of the strategy and operations. This focus has highlighted the benefits of continually monitoring trends in order activity. Fraud manager, Catherine Tong  will present her thoughts on how she has minimised costs and maximised business opportunities through the implementation of appropriate tools and processes at the UK’s largest online retailer.

Catherine Tong, Fraud Manager, Tesco Online

Benchmarking across sectors, Leigh will look at what are acceptable fraud levels and the associated associate revenue drivers.

Leigh Wingrove, Head of Risk EU, Retail Decisions

Charlie McMurdie – The Metropolitan Police’s Economic Crime Unit is working closely with a broad selection of UK plc, including the retail sector, to thwart international fraudsters and offshore ‘phishers’ attracted by the ‘shop window of criminal ‘opportunities’ on the High Street. ECU head Superintendent Charlie McMurdie will discuss how collaboration and co-operation is helping in the 24/7 battle against the shape-shifting ecriminals.

Superintendent Charlie McMurdie, head of PceU, Metropolitan Police

The British Retail Consortium, last year, stated that fraud is a crime that is second only to the illegal drugs trade in terms of its impact on the UK. A report commissioned in 2007 by the Association of Chief Police Officers estimated the cost of fraud to be at least £14bn a year. According to APACS, plastic card fraud alone cost nearly £610m in 2008 - and reached £350m in just the first half of 2009, according to a KPMG report.

With the growth in multi-channel retailing and the compelling figures above, fraud and e-crime need to be a key priority for companies' Heads of Security and Risk Managers.

Mike and Tim will identify the emerging trends in crime against retail, will demonstrate some new and innovative initiatives that will help meet these trends, as well as provide some insight on developments at the heart of the battle against retail crime.

David Britton, Vice President of Industry Solutions at 41st Parameter

Stay one step ahead of the fraudster:
Online fraud poses particular problems for retailers. This session from CIFAS, the UK’s fraud prevention service, will cover current threats, trends, ways to protect your business from online and identity fraudsters, and will explain how information sharing and vigilance can help.

Natalie Quest, Policy and Projects Manager, CIFAS

Mahmoud El-Azzeh, 192 Business, Retail Product Specialist

A survey by Cybersource in January 2010 found that retailers expect to lose an average of 1.8% of their income to fraud.  The threat could be even more costly if there are vulnerabilities in the storage, transfer and processing of cardholder data that can be exploited by fraudsters.   

There are a number of solutions currently being used by retailers, including data field encryption (commonly known as “end-to-end encryption”) and tokenisation.  These are the latest ways to tackle the problem - by allowing only encrypted data to be handled and processed.  With tight controls over encryption and decryption ‘keys’, data is more secure and protected.  These methods can also reduce the cost of compliance with PCI DSS regulations.

As more retailers look at implementing these solutions, Steve Wilson from Visa Europe will provide an overview of what is available, examine the essential requirements of data field encryption, and outline how the industry is coming together to agree standards for implementation.

Steve Wilson, Head of PCI DSS Compliance, Visa Europe

For too long retailers have under reported crime and the Police have consequently not provided the appropriate resource due a lack of meaningful data. A new online real time information sharing platform that has caught the eye of retailers, the police and the Home Office, is about to change all of that.

CR:IISP (Criminal Reporting Integrated Information Sharing Platform) is an innovative online information sharing platform that allow retailers, crime reduction partnerships and the law enforcement community to share data on known offenders in real time.

Maxine Fraser National Executive Officer of RAC will explain why CR:IISP is fully endorsed by the organisation she runs and why it will become the mechanism that will help RAC establish new footholds throughout the UK over the next few years

Maxine Fraser, National Executive Officer, Retailers Against Crime