With layoffs, inflation, increasing costs of goods due to supply chain disruptions, and uncertainty around the economic outlook, retailers face greater competition for shopping dollars in 2023. On top of that, they are being asked to provide more seamless and secure shopping experiences. This includes making online and payment services cost-effective and disaster-proof as possible from cloud provider outages and cyberattacks.  

With this scenario in mind, here are three retail predictions to watch for in the coming year. 

1. Zero Trust will Secure the Retail Cloud 

Many retail applications are now deployed in the public cloud. As new generations of human-like bots bypass CAPTCHAs and traditional security measures, securing the retail business presence in the cloud requires even more sophisticated protection from price scraping, inventory exhaustion, and denial-of-service attempts. Cloud-based retail service edge will require not only context-aware, app-specific user access to retail applications in the cloud, but also zero trust architecture for data for APIs, applications, and services. 

2. Buy Now, Pay Later Apps will be Target for Hackers 

Many retailers now support buy now, pay later (BNPL), to attract buyers and inflation-affected shopping dollars. Retail stores support these apps through API integrations. With demand for installment purchases growing, you can expect to see more breaches in BNPL apps and payment services as APIs become attractive targets for hackers looking for financial gain. 

3. Renewed Focus on Automation for Application Protection  

Wide-spread availability of hacking tools and malware, coupled with a lack of skilled cyber personnel with deep multi-cloud expertise, will drive investment in automation application protection, incident response, and compliance. As a result of lack of human expertise, customers will be willing to pay for managed service providers and consulting firms with the skills to manage and secure multi-cloud deployments. 

The author, Prakash Sinha, is Senior Director and a Technology Evangelist, at Radware.