Retail IT News For VARs — April 25, 2014
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
In the news this week, Michaels confirms the breach of data affecting up to 2.6 million cards in its system. The National Retail Federation also announced a plan for a new information-sharing platform for cybersecurity threats, which will aid retailers in fighting hackers. In addition, Practical Ecommerce provides some advice for navigating the crowded ecommerce platform market to help your customers select the best system.
Michaels Confirms Breach Of Affecting About 2.6M Cards
Michaels Stores has announced that about 2.6 million cards, or about 7 percent of all debit and credit cards used at its stores, may have been affected in a security breach, AOL news reports. Its subsidiary Aaron Brothers was also attacked, with about 400,000 cards potentially affected, but the company said that it has contained the incident, which began last year. It has received “limited” reports of fraud from banks and the payment card brands that are potentially connected to the breach.
Information-Sharing Platform On Cybersecurity Planned By NRF
DrugStoreNews reported that the National Retail Federation (NRF) has announced that it is moving forward with the creation of a program that will provide retailers access to information on cybersecurity threats identified by retailers, government and law enforcement agencies, and partners in the financial services sector. The program, developed in consultation with the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC), will launch with the establishment of an information-sharing platform for retail industry information security specialists, and plans call for a retail ISAC to be established in June.
Hackers Can Target Vending Machines, HVAC Monitoring Systems
A The New York Times article says cyberattacks can be tied to a third party, such as vending machine or heating and cooling providers who monitor devices remotely. Vendors are tempting targets for hackers because they tend to run older systems, and once hackers have found a way in, the devices offer them a place to hide in plain sight.
Navigating 2014’s Crowded E-Commerce Platform Market
Practical Ecommerce provided tips for helping your customers select the best e-commerce platform. This article includes information on open-source, proprietary, and SaaS solutions, mobile support, design flexibility and extensibility, TCO, support for content marketing, business intelligence, and tailoring the platform to a specific retailers’ needs.
Retail IT Talking Points
DrugStoreNews reports retail sales sprang to life in March. According to the NRF, March retail sales — which exclude automobiles, gas stations and restaurants — increased 0.8 percent, adjusted month to month, and 1.6 percent, unadjusted year over year. March retail sales, released by the U.S. Census Bureau — which include categories such as automobiles, gasoline stations, and restaurants — increased 1.1 percent seasonally, adjusted month-to-month ($433.9 billion). The Census Bureau also reports that retail sales increased 3.8 percent, adjusted year over year.
In this interview with the eMarketer, David Edelman, a partner and global co-leader of digital marketing and sales practice at management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, discusses how mobile tracking technology, particularly iBeacon, will alter shopping for consumers and retailers. He concluded that 2014 is going to be a year of testing and learning.
In this article from TechCrunch, an alternative to NFC is proposed by one start-up company: pay-by-palm, which reads the pattern of veins in the consumer’s hand. Could this be the new future of payment technology?
For more news and insights, visit BSMinfo’s Retail IT Tech Center.