A new study by the American company Akamai comes to the conclusion that retail company websites are increasingly being targeted by hackers.

Tech company Akamai released a report after a year and a half of research and concluded that retail is increasingly the target of cyberattacks. This affects 34 percent of the cases examined. The report is based on data from the Akamai Connected Cloud, a network active in more than 130 countries.

Why

Migration to the cloud, the proliferation of online devices, and the availability of tools via the dark web explain the rise in cyberattacks targeting retail.

Additionally, a third comes from JavaScript for third-party trading sites, which increases the threat from that site as well. These scripts are therefore not unreliable, but increase the security risk due to possible vulnerabilities.

cyber arsenal

Bots, phishing and server attacks are the most common methods used by hackers to attack retail websites. But also API attacks or Remote Code Execution belong to the arsenal.

The most popular way to attack commercial websites seems to be an LFI attack (Local file mount), followed by attacks targeting XSS vulnerabilities (Cross Site Scripting). Both forms attempt to add scripts to websites to bypass access security.

According to the report, the rise in LFI attacks proves that hackers want to stay more under the radar and move more freely on a network. This allows them to target larger targets in the supply chain.

Bots or entire botnets are often used to search websites for the best offers and collect them. This affects the proper functioning of a website.

Phishing attacks on retail websites are also becoming increasingly popular. There are genuine kits for sale online that come with a well-designed spoof site and infrastructure via cloud services. A URL shorter is often used to mask the fake website. It is striking that most of these attacks are concentrated in North America.

Earlier this year, Akamai warned of an increase in API attacks and suggested expanding its security services.