Dayton-area BBB warns about holiday package thefts

Watch out for a Scrooge visiting your front porch this holiday season.

The Better Business Bureau is warning people about thieves grabbing packages off porches as a deluge of Christmas gifts ordered online arrive at households across the region.

“They can actually be casing the neighborhood to see who gets packages on regular occasions,” said John North, president and chief executive of the Better Business Bureau-Dayton/Miami Valley. “So when those packages appear they run up and take them off your porch.”

He said the thieves can be very bold and it is difficult to catch them because they move so quickly and then are gone.

“The best thing is thinking ahead,” North said.

He suggests having packages delivered to your workplace or to a neighbor who will be home when the package comes. You can also instruct the delivery service to leave a note so you can pick it up.

“Another good thing is more and more the delivery companies are on to it,” said North. “So if there is a big package, especially one that is displaying what the product is, they’ll put it in a discreet place.”

He said scam artists also take advantage of online buying by tricking people into clicking fake tracking links on emails designed to look as if they come from UPS or some other delivery service. The scam emails go out this time of year because thieves know people will be buying online and checking the status of the delivery.

When the victim clicks on the fake link they wind up downloading malware that can lead to theft of information on the computer, said North.

He recommends that people never click on links in the emails, but instead go to the delivery service’s website directly and then track the package.

Dayton Police Major Wendy Stiver said thieves also are looking to grab gifts from cars and houses so she urged people to keep gifts locked up and out of sight. She said neighbors can help by watching out for each other.

Dayton Police are using some creative methods of trying to catch the porch package thieves in action, but Stiver said she didn’t want to publicly reveal those methods.

“It’s a concern for us because it impacts our neighborhoods,” Stiver said. “We have a vested interest in trying to stop it and prevent it from happening.”

Police put a message on Next Door, the city’s social media site, urging people to report package thefts to police even if the vendor sends another package to replace the stolen one.

“These are most likely crimes of opportunity,” Stiver said. “It’s frustrating to residents, especially this time of year when you’ve ordered something and were hoping to get it in time for the holidays.”

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Tips to make sure package arrives safely

Insure package

Require a signature for delivery

Pick up package at delivery service office

Ask a friend to accept package

Ship package to your workplace

Source: Better Business Bureau

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