Retail has become the number one target for cybercriminals, with more breaches than any other business sector.
In many cases, these attacks are motivated by a financial motive. For example, hackers can steal customer credit card information and sell it on the dark web for a profit.
Retailers must protect their network databases, often used to distribute malware campaigns and espionage operations. They must also be protected from DDoS attacks that can prevent business transactions and damage reputation.
Cybercriminals
As the retail industry expands online, it has become an attractive target for cybercriminals. The growth in e-commerce means that retailers have more customer data than ever, making it easier to steal information such as bank details or credit card numbers.
The growing threat of cyberattacks in retail sector has reached critical levels as hackers continue to try and exploit weak spots across the business and its infrastructure. These vulnerabilities can be costly, damaging both the company and its reputation.
Cybercriminals can attack retailers through various methods, but most attacks are designed to collect sensitive data. These data breaches can have several consequences, including financial losses, reputational damage and fines.
A popular type of retail cyber-attack is point-of-sale (POS) malware attacks, where hackers install malicious software on POS systems that allow them to steal customers’ credit card details. This has happened to retailers like Target, which lost 40 million customer credit card records. Other techniques include phishing emails, rogue websites and drive-by downloads.
Insider Threats
In a recent report, it was found that one-third of organizations have faced an insider threat in the past year. These incidents are costly and often extend for months or even years.
While these threats can be challenging to identify, they can also be prevented through behavioral analytics and employee tracking tools. By using artificial intelligence and machine learning, these programs can monitor user behavior and detect changes in the pattern that humans may not see.
Malicious insiders use authorized access to compromise networks, data or devices to gain unauthorized control of an organization’s assets. They can be current employees, former employees, contractors or third-party entities.
They can take various actions, such as leaking sensitive information, disrupting operations, harassing directors, stealing proprietary data or intellectual property or even perpetrating violence. They may also be motivated by financial gain, political ideology or revenge for a perceived wrong or lack of recognition.
Targeted Attacks
Retailers have become a popular target for cybercriminals seeking to steal money and customer data. The growing popularity of online shopping has created a lucrative source of revenue for hackers as more customers trust their personal information to retail stores and websites.
A report found that retail businesses are among the most vulnerable industries to cyberattacks. The growing threat reflects the industry’s rapid expansion and reliance on technology, increasing the attack surface for cybercriminals.
As more retail stores adopt e-commerce, cybercriminals use various techniques to hack into systems and databases that store customer data. They can use phishing emails, malicious links and malware that targets customers to gain access to personal information or credit card details.
Point-of-sale (PoS) devices that process customer payment information are becoming more popular targets. They can be infected with ransomware or a denial-of-service attack, which causes retailers to lose their ability to accept payment.
Denial of Service Attacks
The growing threat of cyberattacks affects all industries, but retail is one of the most vulnerable. Attacks can impact a company’s entire operation, causing downtime and loss of revenue.
While most retailers focus on point-of-sale malware and online attacks that target credit card data, another dangerous type of attack is more general – distributed denial of service (DDoS). This is an overwhelming attack where many Internet users flood the system with requests, overloading the server and slowing it down or even crashing it entirely.
During critical shopping seasons like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the increased traffic that retail sites receive can be particularly damaging to their performance and reputation. Mitigation measures can include using a DDoS mitigation service to keep the site functioning correctly during these events and stress-testing the infrastructure in advance to ensure that it is capable of dealing with a spike in traffic.
Botnets
Botnets are one of the most sophisticated forms of malware. They are networks of malware-infected devices controlled by a remote bot herder and used for cyberattacks.
They are a common cause of many types of attacks and can be challenging to detect. They are also difficult to contain and can lead to serious business problems.
In retail, botnets have been targeting credit card fraud. In this attack, hackers use phishing emails to convince victims to enter their credit or debit card details.
These details are then used to make purchases or steal money from them. In addition, hackers can access PII, which is valuable for other types of fraud.
Botnets have also been used to disrupt sales by buying up inventory without the customer’s knowledge or purchasing items to sell at a higher price. This is called a Denial of Inventory (DOI) attack.
