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A breach of security systems leads to revenue loss, supply chain disruptions, and brand value degradation. When it comes to budgeting, many organisations seem not to concentrate on the significance of the success of their cybersecurity investment but rather on how much the competitive markets invest in it. However, cyberattacks always happen when you least expect them, and properly reacting to them is a responsibility shared by everyone in the organisation.

IT departments will never be able to handle cybersecurity issues on their own. Addressing risks requires a collaborative and cross-functional approach. Business leaders, senior management, and board members who are responsible for minimising these threats must act. They must be aware of the risks and take precautions to guarantee that they are ready for the day when their business is jeopardised.

As further COVID-19 restrictions are eased, it’s clear that consumers have grown devoted to great customer service. They have come to expect a safe shopping experience that is backed by cloud-based solutions. As a result, retailers must invest in digital solutions to retain customer loyalty and drive footfall in 2022. While the term “omnichannel” has been used quite a lot in the retail industry, implementing an effective omnichannel strategy will be critical for survival in the aftermath of the pandemic.

By modernising technology, retail leaders may decrease the risk of cyber-attacks, such as converting a manual method to an automated one. Therefore, how has automated testing become crucial for them to provide high-quality services in a timely manner while keeping prices low?

Introducing DevSecOps and SaaS

DevSecOps is a software development, deployment and operations methodology that, when implemented correctly, can fully automate the end-to-end process of delivering and operating software, with built-in security controls in the continuous delivery pipelines. All apps, databases, infrastructure, and settings are kept in source code repositories as version-controlled code. This code gives a single source of truth as well as trust. Companies can ensure that automated, continuous delivery pipelines deploy their apps fast and properly by codifying infrastructures and settings. These pipelines are used to establish quick feedback loops within development teams.

This way of managing cloud infrastructure at scale allows for rapid, repeatable and predictable deployments which provide the same outcomes with the services, applications, underlying infrastructure, and configuration in the intended state described in the source code.

The same source code can be maintained in a single location and applied across all functional environments several times per day, with feature toggling being one way of providing the ability of staging releases throughout the user base.
Automatic and seamless security features (the “Sec” part of DevSecOps) should be implemented in the CI/CD-pipelines. These typically scan source code for malicious code-injections, misconfigurations, secrets, and should track dependencies and automatically apply critical security patches in third party libraries. Other security features include signed commits, signed images and mandatory MFA on any identity. These are all vital features when implementing Zero-trust principles and will significantly boost developer autonomy and productivity while securing and protecting the information assets.

This principle, also known as idempotency, is essential for running large-scale deployments consistently and safely in a cloud environment. The transition from a humanly executed operation to an automated method is a continuous advancement route known as "shifting left".

Prior to the DevOps and DevSecOps movement, organisations depended mostly on audits and penetration testing to give "point in time" assurance of the system. Leaders may now decrease risk by modernising technology, including shifting from on-premises to software as a service (SaaS) supplied on public cloud platforms. Already proven to be an exceptional framework for the frequent provision of high software with lowered timeframes, SaaS is similarly well suited for rapid resilience in the face of cyberattacks, implying that we are functioning in a world of constant evolution to the production environment and ensuring us with the confidence that our systems are constantly secure.

Prevention before anything

It is critical to have the necessary tools in place to identify breaches. Effective risk management involves preventive steps to deter invasions, but it also acknowledges the inevitability of security breaches and ensures that systems are in place for identification and prevention with the least amount of disruption to the organisation. When it comes to combating cybersecurity attacks, just having a data protection strategy is insufficient. It is about controlling the cyber risk posed by third parties to prevent breaches from occurring in the first place.
The significance of data protection rules in contracts and agreements, which companies may use to build and maintain relationships with their supplier cannot be underestimated here. For essential data, this may range from identity management and mandatory multi-factor authentication to stronger access restrictions that provide control only to those who need it. Then, to reinforce an efficient cybersecurity plan, you may implement additional measures such as defined access to servers, encryption, and network security that safeguards information.

In an age of ever-increasing cyber security risks, retailers and logistics providers rely on technology suppliers to safeguard our markets and supply chains. Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are ideal for dealing with this problem. Traditional security approaches detect risks by using signatures or signs of intrusion. This method may be successful against previously experienced dangers, but it is ineffective against threats that have not yet been found.
Because they can rapidly analyse millions of events and identify a wide range of threats – from malware trying to exploit zero-day security flaws to identifying risky behaviour that could lead to a phishing attack or the download of malicious code – ML and AI technologies gain knowledge over time, drawing on the past to identify new types of attacks today. Behaviour histories provide profiles for people, assets, and networks, enabling AI to identify and react to departures from established standards.

Advice to the retailers of the future

Many businesses now accept alternative platforms for convenience and to improve the in-store consumer experience. Self-service kiosks, specialised self-scanning devices, and mobile applications allow consumers to buy and pay without having to queue at a conventional staffed checkout counter.

Ransomware or similar attacks are often non-specific in their targets, exploiting a widely prevalent security flaw and trying to ensnare as many victims as possible by casting a "wide net”. Because these vulnerabilities are very unlikely to be shared by these other platforms, store activities may continue on the unaffected platform.

Retailers and logistics providers operate in a world where business executives are increasingly demanding that they manage more complicated operations and communicate with customers in new and inventive ways in order to enhance in-store experiences and generate deeper customer loyalty. To address these expectations, a technological revolution is taking place that is shifting away from single-vendor static systems and toward distributed SaaS processes supplied by several providers.

Businesses will thus be able to swiftly adjust to shifting employee and customer expectations. They must have up-to-date information and procedures in place, including key contacts and notification methods, in order to establish timely communication with their service providers.

The future of retail and hospitality will be characterised by a single, holistic perspective of interactions, goods, and management systems as a result of a successful and unified commerce and security system. Creating a safe and personalised experience is something that will continue to be a real priority for retailers.

Providing consumers throughout the globe with a safe, frictionless, and seamless shopping experience has been made possible in part by the retail and logistics industries, which have both played critical roles. As the environment becomes increasingly challenging, businesses that use the appropriate technology and place a strong emphasis on channel-free, dynamic experiences will be able to maintain their competitive edge and differentiate themselves from their competition in a growing market.

Adopting modern technologies such as AI and ML will make it easier to maintain customers’ and employees’ safety. AI will be increasingly utilised for predictive analytics and machine learning to intelligently apply statistical approaches to find risks, trends, and patterns in data, which will improve retailers’ decision making and even automate specific decision points.