Cyber Chaos in the Digital Era

In recent months, some of the UK’s most recognisable retailers, including M&S, Co-op and North Face have found themselves in the cybersecurity spotlight, for all the wrong reasons. The harsh truth remains that the security strategies many retailers are relying on are outdated and unfit for purpose in the current digital landscape of relentless cyber aggression.

The stakes couldn’t be higher – retailers aren’t just losing data, they’re also losing customers, credibility, and operational control. Abdelkader Keddari, VP Global Presales at Fluent Commerce commented, “When trust is breached, particularly where customer data is concerned, the damage to brand reputation and revenue can be severe.”

The retail industry has embraced digital transformation in recent years, but that shift isn’t always a simple transition and has come with growing pains. Many retailers still operate on outdated systems that aren’t capable of responding fast enough to threats, particularly when customer-facing channels are affected.

According to Abdelkader Keddari, these ageing systems are no match for the pace and scale of today’s cyber threats: “The continuous high-profile cyberattacks on major UK retailers have exposed the harsh reality that many still rely on outdated legacy systems which leave them vulnerable and slow to respond.”

Whether it’s a small retailer lacking the resources for advanced cybersecurity, or a large organisation managing huge volumes of customer data, no one is unimpacted when an attack happens. When systems are compromised, the fallout is fast and widespread. Inventory visibility collapses, orders go unfulfilled, and customer confidence vanishes.

Many retailers are shackled to brittle infrastructure that can’t keep up with cyber protection. According to Abdelkader Keddari, “that lack of adaptability is more than a day-to-day issue – it’s a major business risk.” When attackers strike, it’s not just data that’s compromised, visibility disappears, orders vanish and shelves go empty.

Failing to invest in technology can cascade into missed sales, broken supply chains, and angry customers. Retailers need to move beyond old thinking and legacy technology and invest in technology to support building resilience.

While smaller businesses are under-equipped to defend themselves, large retailers, with vast attack surfaces and clunky infrastructure, are prime targets. Cybercriminals know that the shift to online has widened the window of opportunity and they’re exploiting every vulnerability. Retailers stuck using legacy technology aren’t just at risk of downtime but they’re tempting long-term reputational damage.

For years, many organisations assumed, if the network perimeter was secure, the business was protected. But that perimeter-centric view no longer holds up, and in that naivety, companies are leaving themselves open to risk. As Glenn Akester, Technology Director for Cyber Security & Networks at Node4, explains, Worryingly, many organisations still operate on the outdated assumption that anything inside their network is safe. However, this model falls apart the moment an attacker gets hold of legitimate credentials. And that’s exactly what’s happening. Today’s attacks aren’t elite, technical hacks.”

In fact, modern breaches often don’t look like “hacks” at all. Instead, they exploit:

• Social engineering tactics that convince staff to hand over credentials
• MFA fatigue attacks, where users are tricked into approving login requests
• Leaked credentials from old breaches that still work

These attacks are low-cost, high-reward and they don’t require elite technical skills. Once inside, attackers can move quickly and quietly, making detection more difficult.

The rise in digital extortion models has added a new layer of threat. Shobhit Gautam, Staff Solutions Architect, EMEA at HackerOne highlights how ransomware attacks have evolved, “Digital extortion has emerged as the prevailing ransomware attack model. This approach begins like a standard ransomware attack, with the victim pressured to pay up to regain access to encrypted files. Unknown to the victim, the attackers have already absconded with a substantial amount of data.”

Failure to pay means your data isn’t just locked, it’s leaked, sold, or broadcast. What makes this even more dangerous in retail is the standardisation of tech.

Shobhit Gautam added, “Retail websites and mobile apps often mirror each other in both design and backend infrastructure, even right down to shared APIs and business logic. This creates a perfect storm. A single vulnerability, whether in a discount code workflow or a third-party plugin, can be exploited across platforms.”

Attackers know where to look and what to look for. Reused codebases and third-party plugins all serve as easy entry points for attackers. To mitigate these threats It’s not just about building higher walls it’s about understanding where the cracks or vulnerabilities are and addressing them.

The consensus across the industry is clear: we need to stop viewing cybersecurity as a series of tick-box tools and start thinking about it as an integral strategy to business continuity. Glenn Akester summarises the shift, saying, “It’s time to stop thinking about cybersecurity as a checklist of tools and start thinking about it as a resilience strategy.”

Building a strategy means looking at security comprehensively, Glenn Akester added, “Building resilience means assuming that something will get through eventually, and making sure your business can detect it, contain it, and recover quickly.”

True resilience considers everything from continuous monitoring of systems and behaviours to regular attack simulations and red-teaming exercises. It also included clear incident response plans that are tested, updated, and rehearsed ahead of an attack.

The message is sobering, but it’s necessary. Retail’s digital evolution has outpaced its cyber defences and threat actors are well aware. But this isn’t a story of inevitable failure. It’s a call to adapt.

Retailers that prioritise resilience both technological and operational stand a fighting chance. That means updating outdated systems, investing in real-time infrastructure, and preparing not just for if something goes wrong, but when. Because when customer data, operational continuity, and brand trust are on the line, security can’t be an afterthought, It has to be built in from the ground up.