Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 74 | Page 29

INFOGRAPHIC
Cybercriminals traditionally resort to domain spoofing by posing as well-known brands and send out emails from supposedly legitimate sender addresses to trick the customers . These emails are designed to make the customers share personal details which can then be used to commit frauds . With a DMARC policy in place , retailers can protect employees , customers and partners from cybercriminals .
The UAE-based retailers , however , rank better in comparison to global retailers across the Forbes Global 2,000 , which comprises 70 companies . As er another survey by Proofpoint , 30 % ( 21 out of 70 ) of the Forbes Global 2,000 retailers have no DMARC record and are exposed to email fraud and domain impersonation .
Moreover , while 70 % of the retailers in Forbes Global 2,000 have achieved some level of DMARC implementation , only 20 % ( 14 out of 70 ) retailers have achieved the highest level of protection and are proactively blocking fraudulent emails from reaching customers , partners , vendors and employees .
The research comes at a time of increased demand for online shopping in the UAE , with the market size of the e-commerce industry in the UAE expected to grow from US $ 7 billion in 2020 to reach US $ 17 billion by 2025 , after the adjustments for the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on e-commerce , according to Statista .
“ Organisations across all sectors should deploy authentication protocols , such as DMARC , to bolster their email fraud defences . From a consumer standpoint , it is vital to remain vigilant and check the validity of all emails and protect customers and businesses ,” added Abou Saleh . p
Cybercriminals are on the lookout for festive seasons and high sales period to drive targeted attacks through impersonation and retailers are no exception to this .
www . intelligentcio . com INTELLIGENTCIO MIDDLE EAST 29