Rapid digitisation has forced fashion brands to reimagine how shopping in the digital world takes place. According to a report from Bain & Company and Flipkart, India’s online shopper base is estimated to increase to 400–450 million by 2027. Coupled with India’s inexpensive data plans, concerns around data security and privacy have to be raised.
With the increasing sophistication in cybercrime, the rise in regulatory demands, and customers’ high expectations for digital experiences, Tenable, the Exposure Management company is urging fashion brands to strengthen their cyber defences and make Active Directory (AD) security a strategic imperative.
“AD determines who can access confidential company data. Once an attacker has a foothold into AD, they effectively have the blueprints to the castle to create new admin-level users, add new machines to the network and deploy malware,” said Kartik Shahani, Country Manager, Tenable India. “Considering the number of seasonal employees that the Indian retail industry turns over, managing access to data can be daunting. Indian retailers need to have AD security measures in place to identify and squash cybersecurity concerns.,”
The fashion industry, like many other industries, faces several security challenges when it comes to protecting its AD environment.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) can present a significant challenge for the fashion industry when it comes to AD security. During the M&A process, companies may need to merge multiple AD environments which can be complex and time-consuming and can be difficult to ensure that all systems and data are properly integrated and secured.
Supply Chain Attack Risk
Supply chain attacks target vulnerable third-party suppliers or vendors to gain access to a target organisation’s systems and data. In the context of AD, an attacker could exploit vulnerabilities in a third-party software or service integrated with AD to gain access to sensitive information, such as customer data and financial information
Protection of IP and data exfiltration threats
Today, data is the most valuable asset for fashion businesses. The idea of data security for the fashion vertical has expanded beyond the traditional safeguarding of designs and patterns to include valuable information regarding customer demographics and shopping habits. The main security threat comes from industrial espionage — competitors trying to obtain classified information stealthily.
Tenable Active Directory is equipped with the capabilities to proactively detect security threats within a fashion company’s AD infrastructure — arising from merger & acquisition activities, weak links in the supply chain and poorly guarded data— and respond to live attacks to stop attackers in their tracks.
