Yeah, I love coming home and seeing a giant logo for expensive boots or Amazon sitting on my front porch facing a busy road.
Does it really matter what the box says on it? To a common criminal bent on stealing packages, any box left on a porch or stoop is like playing secret Santa. You will either get something good or you'll get the prank prize.
The real intrigue is how these shippers can afford to have a certain percentage of theft already calculated into their huge profits.
Amazon.com (from where the machines will strike first), leaves packages on porches in my neighborhood as rule!
Don't discount the theory that I discovered in the early 80's. I called it the; mobility of crime by association theory. The general premise is, you may live in a very nice neighborhood and have great neighbors. And some of those neighbors have teen children. Even they may be good kids. But they have friends, as do many; that are not as nice as they seem to be. Almost every person I know has at least one friend throughout their lives that is of questionable judgment or integrity. And those people would never steal from their friends, particularly their closest friends. But the theory comes into action when the kids next door have these friends over for a visit. Those visits are harmless to the neighbor and his kids, but they can be reconnaissance missions for the friends. You see, the association has put the friends that don't live near you in your neighborhood. If they are criminals, they are now using the cover of the visit to case the neighborhood and possibly your stuff. And many times, the outsiders may or may not be criminals either; but they may have other associations in their own neighborhoods that would rob you soon as look at you. When stuff ends up missing from your yard, are you going to assume it's the neighbors kids? The ones you actually like? Do you ever consider my theory now that you understand it. I watched this scenario unfold before my eyes when I lived in Metairie. The visitors lifted a bicycle that was parked in a driveway two doors down as they left "their" friends house.
Same theory works in the UPS style of crime. These drivers wouldn't necessarily dare steal on their own routes or trucks because of the scrutiny; but when they figure out what some of these vendors sell, and it is common to leave them on people porches, don't ever think for a second the mobility of crime by association theory wouldn't come into play. They do it all the time out there.
