Fighting Back: How OSINT is Disrupting Organized Retail Crime 

Date Posted: April 16th, 2025

Organized retail crime (ORC) is an escalating threat, with sophisticated criminal networks targeting retailers to steal and resell merchandise at scale. These operations leverage technology and strategic coordination, hitting both brick-and-mortar stores and online platforms.

The Growing Impact of Organized Retail Crime

According to the National Retail Federation, retailers experience over $700,000 in ORC losses for every billion dollars in sales. Approximately 60% of retailers report prioritizing ORC prevention more than they did five years ago. Unlike traditional shoplifting, which typically involves individuals stealing for personal use, ORC is highly structured and executed at scale. Tactics include:

• Gift fraud
• Coordinated theft rings
• Reselling stolen merchandise through online marketplaces

Retailers have long battled ORC, but a wave of high-profile “smash-and-grab” incidents has heightened concern among executives, security teams, and law enforcement. Loss prevention professionals must now navigate complex security challenges and deploy advanced intelligence tools to dismantle multi-state or even international criminal networks.

How OSINT is Transforming Retail Security Strategies

The expansion of online marketplaces has provided criminals with an easy way to sell stolen goods while operating behind digital anonymity. Beyond well-known platforms, organized crime groups exploit lesser-regulated online spaces, encrypted apps, and forums to coordinate thefts and distribute stolen merchandise. Additionally, the dark web remains a hub for illicit retail fraud and cybercrime, making it even harder for security professionals to track and mitigate threats.

The Power of OSINT for Retail Security

To combat these evolving threats, retailers and security teams must adopt a proactive intelligence-driven approach. Open-source intelligence (OSINT) plays a pivotal role in tracking, analyzing, and disrupting ORC networks. Key benefits of OSINT in ORC investigations include:

• Real-time alerts – Automated OSINT tools scan online marketplaces, forums, and the dark web for stolen merchandise, providing retailers with timely insights to act swiftly.
• Uncovering criminal networks – Identifying one individual involved in ORC often reveals a web of accomplices. OSINT tools analyze relationships across social media, encrypted messaging apps, and other platforms to expose connections and track organized theft rings.
• Deanonymizing threat actors – Security footage, online profiles, and alias accounts often provide crucial leads in ORC investigations. OSINT tools cross-reference open-source data to uncover real identities, legal records, and locations, equipping retailers and law enforcement with actionable digital intelligence.

Strengthen Your ORC Prevention Strategy with Penlink

Retail crime is an ongoing battle, but with the right digital intelligence tools, security professionals can stay ahead of these evolving threats. Penlink’s solutions empower corporate security teams to identify, track, and mitigate ORC activity—leveraging advanced OSINT capabilities to protect inventory, assets, and revenue.

Discover how Penlink is working with enterprise security teams to combat organized retail crime. Contact us today to learn more about our industry-leading solutions and improve your retail security strategy.