Retail Industry – Safe from Cyberthreats?

The retail industry is on top of the hit list for cyber attacks. Though cyber intruders and their modus operandi are rapidly developing, the retail sector remains to be the primary denominator for cyber attacks. Therefore, the retailers must game up their security measures accordingly irrespective of how small or huge their organization is.

Retail industry adapting itself to the next level of technology which is cloud computing. Cloud technology is a double-edged sword that provides a considerable transformation and also causes security risks and bugs which paves way for malicious intruders. E-commerce is majorly targeted by cybercriminals as it contains sensitive information about customers including Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and their payment information succeeding an online transaction.

The cybercriminals attack a retailer and the entire dominoes fall apart providing access to their customer’s personal data. These sensitive customer’s information is sold on the dark web which constitutes identity thefts and phishing. Cyber attacks are getting bolder and more sophisticated which leaves every business entity as a cyber victim.

The retail industry must maintain better IT security counter-measures as their profit solely relies on protecting the customer’s sensitive payment information to generate revenue. An E-Commerce application is developed and run economically with fewer security features in the application when compared to achieving positive customer satisfaction. This lack of attention to detail to the security features on the application costs the retailer a huge sum.

Retailers must include a security standard known as “Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS)” – an information security standard for businesses that involve credit/debit cards.  This Compliance assures the customers that the specific retailer has the payment card information control and vouches to prevent data theft and fraudulent activities. This compliance is mandatory for any retailer and also adds a fine of $100,000 or $500,000 per month for non-compliance ones.

Retailers need to emphasize PCI-DSS Compliance to protect their reputation.