Why Systematic Theft Management Makes the Difference
Shoplifting costs German retailers billions every year. According to the EHI Retail Institute, inventory shrinkage recently totaled around €4.95 billion annually, with roughly €2.95 billion attributable to shoplifting alone. Store detectives and staff uncover around half a million cases a year – and every single one triggers its own round of paperwork: filing a police report, pursuing a civil recovery claim, notifying the authorities, and settling accounts.
For multi-store retailers, three pain points compound each other. Hundreds of stores log incidents inconsistently, leaving data incomplete and impossible to compare. External security agencies need to be properly qualified, schedulable, and accountable – from certification under Germany's Trade Regulation Act (§ 34a GewO) to invoicing. And everything downstream – the police report, the collections process, the civil claim – has to run in full compliance with GDPR.
Sherlock was built to manage this entire process end to end – developed by retailers, for retailers. Every component runs on a single shared data foundation covering stores, security agencies, and individual detectives, including their hourly rates and specialties. That means losses and prevention spend finally become manageable, backed by solid data.
Fully Connected
One seamless process from incident logging to analysis – no system breaks. All you need in-store is a browser.
Fully Controlled
Complete oversight of external security personnel: certificates of good conduct, § 34a certification, and proof of social security registration are all verified — expired documentation locks access automatically.
Cost-Effective
Annual and monthly budgets by store, cost-benefit metrics by agency, and pro forma invoicing with planned-vs-actual reconciliation make every euro accountable.
Legally Sound
Paperless submission to the police's online reporting portal, plus export to legal counsel and collections for civil recovery — GDPR-compliant with built-in anonymization.
Insight-Driven
Dashboards, pivot analysis, and geo-analytics reveal theft patterns by time, region, and product category – a complete security picture for every store, on demand.
Built to Scale
Designed for retailers with hundreds of stores: a central data foundation, clearly defined user permissions, and ongoing maintenance and version support.
Sherlock Features at a Glance
Sherlock covers the entire theft management process through a connected set of modules — from the security agency portal, through incident logging, to export and analysis. Every module runs on one shared data foundation.
Security Agency Portal
Agencies maintain their own detectives' credentials – certificates of good conduct, § 34a certification, proof of social security registration. Only approved detectives can work within Sherlock, and expired credentials trigger an automatic lock.
Scheduling & Budgets
Annual and monthly budgets by store, scheduling by agency and detective, and central approval – budget discipline before a single shift begins.
Incident Reporting
Flexible reporting with anywhere from 5 to 85 fields, item data pulled in via integration, and instant document generation – consistent across every store.
POS-Driven Deployment Triggers
CashControl surfaces suspicious checkout activity, giving you an additional data point for deciding where, when, and on what to focus detective coverage.
Repeat Offender Detection
Cross-store checks for repeat and organized offenders happen right at the point of reporting – building a complete picture of each individual, not just isolated incidents.
QR Code Time Tracking
Secure clock-in and clock-out for detectives at each store – making attendance and performance objectively verifiable.
Direct Submission to Police
Paperless transfer of the police report straight to the police's online reporting portal – GDPR-compliant with anonymization built in.
Civil Recovery & Collections
Export to legal counsel or a collections agency to pursue civil recovery, with a direct handoff to accounting – no duplicate data entry required.
Beyond Shoplifting
Burglary, fraud, vandalism, empty packaging, and more – for a complete security picture at every store.
Reporting & Geo-Analytics
Pivot analysis, dashboards, and geo-analytics reveal cost-effectiveness by agency and theft patterns by time, region, and product category.
One Process, Every Stakeholder
From the incident in the store to the entry in head office accounting, Sherlock connects every role in theft management on a single data foundation – each with exactly the permissions they need.
Schedule a Free Online Consultation
We'd be happy to walk you through Sherlock in a personal online meeting, using examples from your own store operations. Simply pick a time that works for you and book it. Or reach out through our contact form – we'll get back to you promptly.
Robert Wolf
Frequently Asked Questions About Sherlock Theft Management Software
What is theft management software?
Theft management software organizes every step that follows a shoplifting incident: logging the event, filing the police report, pursuing civil recovery, notifying the authorities, and running the analysis. Sherlock covers this entire process end to end, with full audit support.
How does Sherlock support work with store detectives?
The security agency portal verifies credentials such as certificates of good conduct and § 34a certification. Scheduling, QR-code time tracking, and pro forma invoicing with planned-vs-actual reconciliation make the attendance, performance, and billing of external detectives fully accountable.
How does the police report get filed?
Through a paperless export straight to the police's online reporting portal – directly from Sherlock, GDPR-compliant with anonymization. That removes a significant chunk of administrative work per incident.
What happens with the civil recovery claim?
Sherlock hands the case off to legal counsel or a collections agency to pursue the civil recovery claim, and to accounting for settlement – with no duplicate data entry and a complete audit trail.
Does Sherlock detect repeat offenders?
Yes. At the point of reporting, Sherlock already checks across all stores for repeat and organized offenders – building a complete profile per individual rather than treating each case in isolation.
What offenses does Sherlock cover besides shoplifting?
Burglary, fraud, vandalism, empty packaging, and other offenses are all logged – giving you a complete security picture for every store.
Is Sherlock GDPR-compliant?
Yes. Anonymization on export, clearly defined user permissions, and centralized, audit-ready data management are all built into the solution.
What does a store need to use Sherlock?
Just a browser. Sherlock is fully web-based – no client installation and no extra hardware required in-store.