With increased digitisation within the UK retail sector due to a surge in online shopping and technology innovations, consumers are demanding seamless, personalised purchases at discount prices. There is an accelerating shift to e-commerce platforms, mobile apps and integration of AI machine learning and IoT (Internet of Things) for a more seamless and personalised experience. 

However, with its vast digital touchpoints and transactions, the retail sector faces the growing risk of data breaches, identity theft and cyber attacks. Protecting customer information and maintaining trust must be paramount to any retail business.

Retailers are also contending with cyber security threats driven by a demand for greater supply chain and warehouse efficiency, through increased adoption of IoT, AI solutions, robotics and GPS tracking data.

Furthermore, complex supplier ecosystems and point-to-point solutions implemented with the aim of protecting network estates also open up the potential for cyber attacks. Attacks on retailers’ digital infrastructure are becoming alarmingly common. A Cyber security breaches survey published April 2023 showed nearly a third (32%) of UK businesses identified a cyber security breach or attack in 12 months.

This is made even more challenging by the migration to cloud services and SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions.

The UK retail market is particularly vulnerable to ransomware attacks. The sector has experienced a 264% surge in ransomware attacks  globally on e-commerce and online retail businesses. One in every five ransomware attacks target an online retail business. These attacks can have damaging ramifications for supply chains and cause network system downtime, as well as economic and reputational loss.

In April 2022, UK retailer The Works was forced to close some stores, with others forced to only carry out cash transactions after they were the target of a cyber attack. It resulted in delays in stock arrivals and late deliveries of some online customer orders. 

We’ll work with you to assess your security level and help you put a plan in place to ensure the best levels of cyber security protection. A BT cyber security health check enables businesses to understand where their security level is against the rest of the retail industry, using one of the industry’s recognised frameworks, such as the CIS Critical Security Controls.

We also offer cyber security advisory and consultation services that can help businesses at every stage of their security journey. 

As a leading connectivity provider, our solutions equip retailers with cutting-edge security with an encrypted network, giving them greater control over their network and helping them meet their ever-increasing bandwidth demands.

In an age of online shopping and seamless payment transactions, there is an increasing threat of data breaches and non-compliance. With rapidly increasing card payment volumes, it is vital that retailers have a secure and flexible network solution in place to process their card transactions.

A simple, cloud-managed and PCI compliant payment solution enables consumers to utilise their preferred payment method.

Ensuring security and compliance for retailers’ contact centres is at the heart of what we do. Contact centre compliance and security solutions ensure retailers are secure and compliant with the latest regulations. All these solutions are scalable and flexible, making them easy to implement and manage.

As global security threats to UK businesses evolve, it’s vital retailers update and enhance their cyber security strategies, and implement robust and flexible solutions within the security ecosystem to safeguard their organisations and supply chains.

We are perfectly placed to deliver those essential cyber security solutions and future-proof every retail business in the UK. For more information on our security products and services please visit our sustainability page or learn more about our Retail solutions here.