The Holiday Season Is a Bonus for Porch Pirates: Here’s How to Fight Them

Gerald Storch, CEO of Storch Advisors and former CEO of Toys”R”Us, reacts to a new report revealing that shoplifting is up 24% in the United States so far this year.

Porch hacking continues to be a significant problem for consumers. Thieves stole packages worth billions of dollars in 2023.

SafeWise, a home safety and security expert company, has estimated that 260,000 package theft incidents occur every day, but given the number of packages stolen at one time, it is expected that the number of packages stolen daily could exceed 325,000.

The SafeWise 2024 Package Theft Report reveals that $16 billion worth of packages were stolen in 2023.

To highlight the scale of the problem, some scammers have gone so far as to use cellular data to track packages containing AT&T iPhones and pick them up moments after delivery, according to multiple reports.

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“As the Christmas shopping season picks up, package volume increases and thieves, feeling the economic pressures of the season, are more motivated to seize the opportunity,” said Tomasz Borys, vice president of marketing at Deep Sentinel. He expects an uptick in the coming weeks, given the increase in online orders following Cyber Monday.

Although the cameras can capture images of thieves, James Moore, co-founder of Porch Pals, a flat-rate insurance company, said they don’t completely solve the problem, including the hassle of replacing a item and refund.

Baltimore resident Rosemarie Dumhart uses a decoy packet, marked with an X, to deter so-called “porch pirates.” (SÉBASTIEN DUVAL/AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)

For $10 a month, his company automatically reimburses a consumer’s debit or credit card within hours of reporting the package stolen.

Some online brands are even leveraging technology to send packages to retailers for pickup, rather than to the customer’s home, which experts say could help alleviate some problems.

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For example, Via.Delivery’s BOPA (Buy Online Pickup Anywhere) technology allows online shoppers to choose from more than 36,000 pickup locations, including major retail chains nationwide. The Company will ship and deliver customer orders to selected locations (BOPA).

Here are other tactics shoppers use to prevent package theft:

According to Stephanie Cyr, a personal security expert and lecturer in personal defense at San Francisco State University, buyers should also utilize their neighbors by developing a buddy system. For example, Cyr said shoppers can ask a trusted neighbor to pick up their packages or sign for them. In return, buyers can offer to do the same for them.

An over-the-door camera is used to film possible thieves, by Baltimore resident Rosemarie Dumhart, to deter so-called “porch pirates” operating in the Canton area of Baltimore, Maryland, on December 17 2018. (Photo by Sébastien DUVAL / AFP) (SÉBASTIEN DUVAL/AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)

Cyr also recommended redirecting a package to a place of work or to a trusted neighbor. They can also update their shipping preferences to require a signature on delivery, which will ensure packages aren’t left unattended.

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Consumers can also use tools like USPS or Amazon package lockers to avoid home deliveries. In some cities, shoppers can also use services like Go Locker, City CoPilot or gopost to protect their packages, although these options may cost more, according to Cyr.