Retail giants in the United States, including Walmart, Kroger, Meijer and Whole Foods, have recently been targeted by a series of false bomb threats. While these threats have proven to be unfounded to date, they have created a climate of fear and disruption in stores across the country.
The perpetrators of these threats have maintained their anonymity by using blocked phone numbers and have made ransom demands in various forms, including Bitcoin, gift cards, and cash.
In one case, an anonymous caller claimed to have planted a pipe bomb at a suburban Whole Foods store in Chicago, demanding $5,000 in Bitcoin. Similarly, a Kroger store in New Mexico was threatened with a bomb detonation unless money was transferred to the caller. In both cases, the shops were evacuated and the police called, but no bombs were found.
The FBI and other law enforcement agencies investigate these threats. Retailers have been urged to immediately report potential threats to 911, obtain recordings of the call and urgently contact their local FBI offices.
These threats are a source of significant disruption for retailers, forcing store closures and the evacuation of customers. Retailers have implemented new safety protocols since incidents escalated this spring.
“It’s disruptive,” Doug Baker, vice president of industry relations at the food trade group FMI, told me. The Wall Street Journal. “If I’m a retailer… I have to close stores and call the police. And send customers on their way.”
Speak against The newsLisa Bruno, senior vice president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association, called the hoaxes “another evolving scam” targeting retailers.
Scammers often make ransom demands in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin because they can be sent quickly and anonymously without going through a bank. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $30,235, reflecting a 0.68% decline over the past 24 hours.
Editor’s Note: This article was written by an nft now contributor in collaboration with OpenAI’s GPT-4.