What to know about porch piracy and what you can do about it

abcnews.go.com:

Here’s what to know about the issue, and what to do if it happens to you.

NEW YORK — You found the perfect holiday gift online. You ordered it. A notification arrived on your phone, showing the package had arrived. But when you open your doors, the parcel is nowhere to be found.

If this has happened to you, then count yourself among the unlucky group of shoppers who fall victim to package thefts — or porch piracy, as it's commonly known.

Here’s what you should know about the issue, and what to do if it happens to you.

It's hard to tell. Most police departments don’t track package theft in its own category, which means there's a lack of national data.

The FBI’s figures do show burglary offenses and larceny-theft — a category that includes shoplifting, pickpocketing, and instances of package theft — have decreased overall in the last 20-plus years. But since both categories are broad and the agency doesn’t keep tabs on specific incidents of package thefts, it's challenging to know whether the problem is getting better or worse.

Some police departments have started to segregate reports of package theft into their own category, which does show some worrying signs. In Denver, Colorado, for example, there’s been more than 1,260 reported incidents of package thefts this year, up from roughly 750 four years ago.

Some industry surveys show it’s a headache for many online shoppers. A product research company called The Chamber of Commerce said it surveyed 1,250 U.S. consumers in October and found that 26% of them have been victims of package theft. The problem was roughly split between urban and suburban areas, it said, and only 18% of consumers who’ve had packages stolen reported it to police.

Another report, which used a