Highlights
- Retailers urged to promote Cyber Essentials and review cyber defences amid rising digital threats.
- Food retail leaders met NCSC to boost collaboration and preparedness.
- NCSC offers free tools to help strengthen cyber resilience across supply chains.
Retailers are being urged to promote Cyber Essentials within their supply chains and revisit their own protections and plans, after senior leaders from food retail met the Chief Executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) last week.
The meeting was part of ongoing engagement between the retail industry and cyber security agencies. As the industry becomes increasingly digitised and automated, retailers face a higher risk from cyber-attacks, which have become increasingly sophisticated.
Strong cyber defences are particularly critical for food retailers to ensure the nation’s food security. Retailers remain well-armed for potential attacks, spending hundreds of millions of pounds every year to mitigate risk and be prepared if they are attacked. They continually review and update their cutting-edge protections and remain in close contact with cyber agencies to share intelligence.
The NCSC has tools and resources available to support all business. The Governance Code of Practice sets out the most critical governance actions for directors, and more and more businesses are adopting the Government-backed certification scheme, Cyber Essentials. The BRC also convenes a series of ongoing engagement between retailers and the NCSC.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC, said, “Cyber attacks are a very real risk for all businesses, especially in an industry as digitally connected as retail.
"No business can be 100 per cent safe and I would encourage every retailer to promote Cyber Essentials within their supply chains and revisit their own protections and plans.
"Wednesday’s meeting was another opportunity for food retailers to reaffirm their commitment to working together to counter the risks an attack could pose, and are ensuring they are on the front-foot. They are in regular contact with cyber agencies, sharing intelligence, and invest huge sums every year on both protections and preparedness.”
Richard Horne, Chief Executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, said, “In the modern world, cyber resilience is business resilience, and so I was pleased to welcome senior leaders from UK food retailers into NCSC headquarters on Wednesday to discuss how the sector can effectively manage the online threats they face.
“In a sector with many digital dependencies across complex supply chains and large estates, leaders being proactive in understanding cyber risk, sharing best practices and taking action to raise defences is exactly what is required to stay secure.
“We look forward to working further with the sector to support their efforts and encourage continued uptake of our free advice and guidance, including our cyber governance resources, to protect themselves online.”