porch package

Study: One in Four Americans Have Had Package Stolen By “Porch Pirates”

Nearly half of Americans don’t believe that delivery companies are doing enough to prevent theft, but the survey respondents also aren’t willing to change their online shopping habits.

Package theft and “porch pirates” have become key concerns of American adults both during and outside of the holiday shopping season, with almost one in four adults saying they have had a package stolen in a recent study.

The survey of more than 1,000 online shoppers by Illinois-based Shorr Packaging Corp. found that 24 percent of respondents had a package stolen. Sixty-four percent of people who had a package stolen said they have since decided to mail their packages to a different address to prevent theft, and nearly 80 percent said they have changed their plans to be around to pick up the package right after it’s delivered.

Among all of the respondents, though, Americans were less likely to send a package to a different address. Almost 70 percent said they were not willing to change their holiday shopping practices due to fears of package theft, according to MarketWatch.

But victims of “porch pirates” have taken several steps to improve residential security. One in four people who have had a package stolen said they added a doorbell camera to their front door, and 17 percent said they installed motion lights to sense when someone is at the door.

The study found that 44 percent of all respondents said delivery companies, like Amazon, UPS and FedEx, are not doing enough to prevent package theft. The companies pointed to services that allow customers to track their packages as they are traveling to the delivery point, ostensibly giving consumers the chance to plan their days around package deliveries.

Some package-theft victims reported taking precautions to prevent future porch piracy, shelling out an average of $191 on home security: One in four said they’d added a doorbell camera, 19% said they had added some other camera, 17% employed motion lights, 10% bought a dog, 5% installed a fence or gate, and 4% said they had used Amazon’s AMZN, +0.10% Key and Smart Lock Kit to enable in-home delivery.

UPS suggested to MarketWatch that customers could have shipments sent to where they are during the day or to a trusted friend who is home during the day. Amazon and FedEx have advised worried customers to send their packages to Amazon package lockers at convenience stores or FedEx offices.

Ordering products online and selecting “in-store pickup” is another option to ensure packages are not taken off the porch.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • New Report Reveals Top Trends Transforming Access Controller Technology

    Mercury Security, a provider in access control hardware and open platform solutions, has published its Trends in Access Controllers Report, based on a survey of over 450 security professionals across North America and Europe. The findings highlight the controller’s vital role in a physical access control system (PACS), where the device not only enforces access policies but also connects with readers to verify user credentials—ranging from ID badges to biometrics and mobile identities. With 72% of respondents identifying the controller as a critical or important factor in PACS design, the report underscores how the choice of controller platform has become a strategic decision for today’s security leaders. Read Now

  • Overwhelming Majority of CISOs Anticipate Surge in Cyber Attacks Over the Next Three Years

    An overwhelming 98% of chief information security officers (CISOs) expect a surge in cyber attacks over the next three years as organizations face an increasingly complex and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven digital threat landscape. This is according to new research conducted among 300 CISOs, chief information officers (CIOs), and senior IT professionals by CSC1, the leading provider of enterprise-class domain and domain name system (DNS) security. Read Now

  • ASIS International Introduces New ANSI-Approved Investigations Standard

    • Guard Services
  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

  • Report: Nearly 1 in 5 Healthcare Leaders Say Cyberattacks Have Impacted Patient Care

    Omega Systems, a provider of managed IT and security services, today released new research that reveals the growing impact of cybersecurity challenges on leading healthcare organizations and patient safety. According to the 2025 Healthcare IT Landscape Report, 19% of healthcare leaders say a cyberattack has already disrupted patient care, and more than half (52%) believe a fatal cyber-related incident is inevitable within the next five years. Read Now

New Products

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.

  • Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

    Connect ONE®

    Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.