Understanding where the weak points are in retail cybersecurity is the first step toward strengthening defense. Let’s look at the top ways hackers breach retailers’ systems.

POS and endpoint attacks

In-store registers and endpoints are among the most common attack surfaces for retailers. Hackers install malware that scrapes POS terminals’ memories or logs keystrokes to steal credit card data.

Phishing and social engineering

Human error remains a key way attackers find a foothold in businesses’ networks. Posing as HQ, vendors, or IT, cybercriminals send phishing emails to store managers (or seasonal staff). They might ask recipients to “verify login” or “reset credentials,” capturing their usernames and passwords. AI has made these messages harder to spot, allowing hackers to craft hyper-personalized and error-free messages. Social engineering also works in reverse: threat actors impersonate a locked-out employee and call the helpdesk to reset passwords or gain privileged access.

Account takeover (ATO)

ATO fraud is a rapidly growing problem for retailer web portals and loyalty programs. Using automated bots, attackers take lists of stolen credentials from data breaches and run them on retailer login portals. These bots use residential proxies and AI solvers to dupe a CAPTCHA and mimic legitimate users. Credential stuffing exploits people’s tendency to reuse passwords, especially weak passwords. Once hackers take over an account, they can drain gift cards, loyalty points, or payment info and make fraudulent transactions.

Malicious extensions and scripts

Threat actors use a variety of browser-based tactics to inject malicious extensions or scripts. For retailers, Magecart attacks are a particular threat, allowing hackers to collect credit card information as customers enter it on ecommerce checkout pages. Attackers insert these digital skimmers via vulnerabilities in CMS or third-party widgets. They may also trick store employees into installing browser extensions, allowing them to steal session cookies or authentication tokens and access systems.

Third-party integrations

Third-party vendors are a prime target for cybercriminals, as a single breach can allow hackers to move laterally into the networks of numerous downstream customers. The number of breaches involving a third party doubled last year, accounting for 30% of hacks. Retailers are especially vulnerable given their reliance on payment processors, POS vendors, logistics apps, and other external vendors.

The good news is that Huntress's cybersecurity solutions for retail companies are designed to guard against these and other threats facing the industry.

Managed EDR

Huntress’s Managed Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) uses a lightweight agent for Windows, macOS, and Linux that runs on store and HQ devices to detect and respond to threats. Paired with our 24/7 AI-assisted SOC, we ensure your endpoints are continuously monitored to catch intruders early. Crucially, Huntress can remotely isolate hosts to contain a threat. Our fully managed EDR service requires no in-house tuning and minimizes false positives and operational burden.

Managed ITDR

Guard against identity-based attacks with Huntress’s Managed Identity Threat Detection & Response (ITDR). This solution extends 24/7 detection to identity platforms (Microsoft 365, Google Workspace) to spot credential theft, location-based and VPN anomalies, malicious OAuth applications, and others in real time. Expert analysts validate alerts and can immediately trigger remediation (e.g., disabling a compromised account).

Managed SIEM

A complementary layer for early detection, Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) ingests logs from across the retail environment, including endpoints, firewalls, VPNs, identity provider (IdP), and more. Huntress’s Managed SIEM uses smart filtering to focus on critical signals, while our 24/7 SOC correlates events (failed logins, suspicious processes, lateral moves) to locate threats before they can do damage.

Our SIEM also streamlines compliance, providing audit-ready logs that we retain up to 7 years. With Huntress’s SIEM, retailers are armed with dashboards and evidence to support PCI DSS and other standards without wrangling raw data.

Managed SAT

No security tool can stop every single threat, so you must establish a culture of security awareness as well. Huntress’s Managed Security Awareness Training uses story‑driven episodes, hands‑on simulations, and gamification to train your store and HQ teams to spot phishing and other social engineering attacks, while supporting key compliance requirements. Reduce human risks that open the door to hackers.

Flexible alerting and compliance reporting

Our solutions integrate with retailers’ existing tools to send the right alerts to the right people. Notifications can be sent via email, SMS, phone calls, Slack/Teams, or ticketing systems. Role-based dashboards and reports provide executives, PCI auditors, and store managers with relevant security summaries. Coordinate teams for incident response and minimize the resource demands of compliance.

Faster containment, fewer breaches

With Huntress in place, retailers can detect and isolate threats before they wreak havoc. Whether it’s account takeover, digital skimming, or malware, Huntress gives you 24/7, AI-assisted threat monitoring, detection, and response. In surveys, 89% of Huntress customers said our Managed EDR has thwarted a threat that would otherwise have significantly impacted their business

Speed of investigation

Huntress’ solutions are purpose-built to provide the highest fidelity telemetry and detections to quickly triage, investigate, respond, and remediate threats, dramatically cutting incident-response time.

Less downtime and cost

Quicker detection and remediation mean retail operations stay online. Huntress slashes incident response cost and downtime. By preventing large-scale data theft, retailers avoid the massive chargeback and compliance costs of a breach. Huntress reporting also simplifies audits, with built-in dashboards and reports. Streamline compliance and be assessment-ready.

Discover the benefits of Huntress’s integrated retail security platform and 24/7 SOC today. Book a full platform demo.