IBM unveils SecureStore

Database and Network Journal, Oct, 2008

IBM have announced SecureStore, a new way to provide retailers with cost-effective solutions to help reduce the billions of dollars of losses caused each year by physical theft, electronic data breaches and compliance violations.

Retailers today in every segment are under tremendous pressure to protect margins amid a "perfect storm" of business risk:

* Preventing physical loss, increasingly perpetrated by organised criminal groups;

* Protecting against database breaches and other electronic threats, often perpetrated by those same criminal groups;

* Complying with Payment Card Industry (PCI) regulations for customer data protection.

According to the 2008 National Retail Federation Organised Retail Crime Survey, 85 percent of the retailers surveyed indicated they had been a victim of organised retail crime in the last 12 months. This represents as much as $30 billion in retail losses each year, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. These same criminal organisations are also attacking retailers online and are largely responsible for the 245 million electronic personal records that have been stolen since January 2005, according to the Attrition.org database of data breaches.

SecureStore delivers framework for protecting against online and physical risks that can help retailers reduce losses from theft, prevent brand and financial damage from data breaches and help reduce the cost and complexity of complying with PCI and other regulations.

In addition to helping protect retailers from organised retail crimes and in store losses, the SecureStore framework can help retailers provide consumers with more protection from identity theft, stolen credit card information and fraudulent purchases. Recent studies show that most shoppers will take their business elsewhere if they find out their personal information was compromised. With SecureStore, retailers can help allay consumer concerns, while safeguarding themselves against financial losses or harm to their brands.

www.ibm.com.