These attacks need to be a wake-up call for every business in the UK,” Pat McFadden, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said. 

Recent cyber-attacks and attempted hacks at some of the UK’s biggest retailers – Marks and Spencer’s, Co-op, and Harrods – have sparked a government response as fears mount across the retail sector.

The cyber-attacks all took place within a matter of days, impacting internal IT systems, and in the case of Co-op, even potentially affecting customer data, the BBC reported.

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre is working with affected organizations to better understand the nature of the attacks, which left M&S with empty shelves and impacted the integrity of Co-op Teams communications.

Currently, the NCSC cannot say if these attacks are linked or part of a targeted campaign, but noted speculations that the M&S attack was proliferated by cyber-crime group Scattered Spider, and that remote access could have been gained over social engineering tactics.

Pat McFadden, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, will set out action the government is taking to improve cybersecurity in a speech this week.

McFadden will call these attacks a “wake-up call for every business in the UK.

“In a world where the cyber-criminals targeting us are relentless in their pursuit of profit – with attempts being made every hour of every day – companies must treat cybersecurity as an absolute priority.

“We’ve watched in real-time the disruption these attacks have caused – including to working families going about their everyday lives. It serves as a powerful reminder that just as you would never leave your car or your house unlocked on your way to work. We have to treat our digital shop fronts the same way.”

The NCSC is urging leaders to follow the advice on the NCSC website to ensure they have appropriate measures in place to help prevent attacks and respond and recover effectively.

These include back-t0-basics measures ranging from multi-factor authentication, enhanced monitoring against unauthorised account misuse and domains, reviewing passwords, advanced identifying systems, and better threat management tactics.

McFadden will also lay out how the government is aiming to enhance the UK’s cyber protections.

“We’re modernising the way the state approaches cyber, through the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill. That legislation will bolster our national defences,” McFadden will say.

“It will grant new powers for the Technology Secretary to direct regulated organisations to reinforce their cyber defences It will require over 1,000 private IT providers to improve their data and network security.

“It will require companies to report a wider array of cyber incidents to the NCSC in the future – to help us build a clearer picture of who, and what, hostile actors are targeting.”

While the NCSC says they have provided specific guidance to the retail sector, the centre “beleive[s] by following best practice, all companies and organisations can minimise the chances of falling victim to actors like this.”

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Source: https://www.digit.fyi/cyber-attacks-a-wake-up-call-to-retail-sector/