1 Out of 2 Americans Fear This Crime Will Ruin the Holidays

The rise of online shopping has left Americans vulnerable to "porch pirates" -- those malefactors who make off with the unattended delivery boxes left sitting outside our front doors. In some case, these are crimes of opportunity, but in others, the thefts are more organized, with the pirates hitting multiple homes in a neighborhood, or even following delivery vehicles from house to house.

They're a menace that has Americans worried, especially at this time of year. According to a recent survey conducted by YouGov on behalf of Canary, a smart-home security company, 49% of us are concerned about having gifts stolen in this way, and 47% worry that porch pirates could ruin their holidays.

Based on prior studies, they have a point, and the numbers are moving in an unpleasant direction. "25.9 million Americans (8%) have had a holiday package delivery stolen from a front porch or doorstep," reported a 2017 survey. "This is up from 23.5 million porch thefts uncovered in our 2015 survey on the same topic."

Source Fool.com