Tag Archives: expert

News

Expert Predicts Sustainable Retail Trends for 2024 and Beyond

Shopaholics are constantly changing how they look at the products and services they spend their money on, and one thing that can massively affect whether they buy something is whether it’s sustainable or not. Figures from Deloitte show how important sustainability is to modern shoppers and consumers, with 58% valuing durability, 39% focussing on repairability, and another 37% consider how biodiverse the purchase will be. 

The sands are shifting towards a more sustainable future in retail but what trends could we see emerge in the coming years? Vikki Makinson, head of marketing and communications at Oceans, the leading suppliers of sustainable toilet paper, has provided expert insight into the future trends of sustainable retail. 

Eco-conscious consumerism 

The biggest surge in trends that 2024 and beyond will see is eco-conscious consumerism, as shoppers are already showing their concern and care for environmental issues through the products they’re purchasing. The statistics show that purchasing behaviours have shifted towards those that have been made more sustainably and retailers will need to respond in kind. 

Adopting transparency with the supply chains used to create the products, as well as incorporating eco-friendly packaging and promoting products that have been sourced ethically will be some of the solutions that retailers use to drive sales. 

Communicating these changes will play a huge role in this, as consumers are constantly educating themselves on which products and services are the most sustainable and the best practices in shopping sustainably. Labels and certifications will be popping up more on packaging to indicate they were produced sustainably. 

The future of sustainability is… technology? 

Technology has filtered its way into many different facets of our lives and retail is likely to be another that sees significant technological advancement. And if there’s one that’ll revolutionise retail spaces it’ll be virtual reality (VR). It’s exploded within the realm of videogames with brands like Sony and Oculus creating and releasing headsets that can be used for a host of games, and the technology will offer a more immersive and interactive experience when shopping. 

Whether it’s in-store or from the comfort of your own home, VR technology could be used to try out the products virtually before making the purchase. Clothing retailers is a perfect example of where it’d be hugely beneficial as you could have a look at how the clothes that peak your interest look on you before you buy them. It’d also reduce the queues that can occur in clothes shops with people waiting for the changing rooms.  

Not only does this enhance the shopping experience, but it can be used to show the lifecycle of the product and how it affects the environment. It can be impactful to shoppers and help make more informed decisions around the products they’re purchasing. 

Creating a circular economy 

One of the key ideas within sustainable retail is recycling and repurposing products where possible, which is why circular economies are likely to become more of a talking point in the coming years. Brands will likely aim to offer products that create a closed-loop system where products are recycled or upcycled into new products. This results in reduced waste and less negative impact on the environment. 

Consumer awareness will continue to increase and will mean that retailers will have to be more willing to embrace design principles that are centred around circular processes. This trend will more than likely grow to be even more encouraged by consumers and will result in more sales when adhered to. 

Localism and community engagement 

Driving sustainability within consumer behaviour will require brands and retailers prioritising business on a smaller scale within communities. This will translate into a resurgence of localism and community engagement with many brands focusing efforts on sourcing materials from local manufacturers, as well as supporting and contributing to local community initiatives and causes. 

Fostering a sense of community and shared responsibility can help to create strong connections with local businesses and those who inhabit the area operated in. This will subsequently extend beyond the products themselves and contribute to the experience of shopping as a whole. 

A more sustainable and ethical future is the aim for retailers to meet the shifting values and expectations of consumers, so it’s likely that trends will evolve rapidly to the point where even the experts struggle to predict them. This is why it’s crucial to keep an eye on how consumers are shopping to get a solid grip on how they’re spending their money. 

Cybersecurity, News

Threats Exploiting Employees a Concern For Microsoft 365 Users

Egress Report Cites Cyber Security Experts, Offers Recommendations to CISOs Representing the 1 Million Companies Deploying Microsoft 365

LONDON, UK – 21st June 2022 – Egress, the leading provider of intelligent email security, has today issued a report identifying a number of security risks facing users of Microsoft 365, which along with its suite of tools, is expected to be relied upon by more than one million companies and over 250 million users[1].

Click here to read the full report: https://pages.egress.com/Whitepaper-EmailRisksInMS365-06-22_2021-Landing-PAGE-eBook.html

The threat analysis has been compiled by leading experts in cyber security. Lisa Forte is the co-founder of Red Goat Cyber Security LLP, Robin Bell is the Chief Information Security Officer, (CISO) at Egress, and Jack Chapman is the VP of Threat Intelligence at Egress. Their collective insights provide both the context associated with perceived risks as well as recommendations for CISOs to reduce both inbound and outbound risk, protecting their people, organization and customers.

Overall, the expert panel felt Microsoft 365’s native security capabilities offered good, basic email protection from phishing, and data loss prevention (DLP) tools for dealing with outbound data loss. However, the group also believes that there remain issues requiring enhanced protection from highly advanced inbound phishing threats, outbound data loss, and exfiltration events that cannot be reduced by static DLP.

“Microsoft’s protection now rivals Secure Email Gateways (SEGs), but there remain substantial gaps in its email security. Both Microsoft and SEGs struggle to detect the most sophisticated social engineering attacks,” said Jack Chapman, Egress VP of Threat Intelligence. “Topping the list are threats that target and exploit individuals such as phishing attacks, and outbound risks such as data loss caused by human error or intentional exfiltration. CISOs must evaluate their level of protection and augment their existing email security with additional layers of technology where required, to protect their employees and their data.”

Snapshot of Email Risks in Microsoft 365

  • Phishing: credential theft, leakage of sensitive/regulated data, navigating users to malicious URLs, requesting multi-factor authentication (MFA) codes, and ransomware.
  • Human Error: autocomplete of the incorrect email recipient, complex, manual management of customizations and settings.
  • Deliberate acts of data exfiltration for as yet unknown use cases that are not covered by policies.
  • Reporting is limited when seeking to understand the level of risk from phishing emails.

Microsoft 365 – CISO Security Recommendations

To CISO’s responsible for the safe deployment and use of Microsoft 365, the Egress report offers a number of key recommendations, beginning with a question – how much do I understand? Framing this guidance is that any tool or service is more easily deployed when it is user-friendly and frictionless.

Understanding begins with CISO’s who must analyze the risks their organization faces in order to prioritize the right layers of security across people, technology, and processes. Further, they must understand the limits of Microsoft 365 and seek to avoid a cookie-cutter cyber approach. A comprehensive, holistic view of the risk is invaluable to identify the products that will complement and seamlessly integrate into your business environment to manage and reduce risks.

This approach must also extend to employees. To reduce human-activated risk, businesses need to reinforce widespread staff training and back it up with intelligent email security tools to catch moments when employees are prone to making mistakes.

According to the 2022 Egress report, Fighting Phishing: The IT Leader’s View, over the past 12 months, 85% of organizations were victims of phishing, 60% of organizations were hit by ransomware, and 40% of organizations had credentials stolen.

[1] Statista: Number of Office 365 company users worldwide as of June 2022, by leading country

For more information and interview requests, contact Jordan Brackenbury at PR@Egress.com