Data & Analytics

New York – The retail industry may be facing a major threat by hackers targeting sensitive consumer data held by numerous chains. According to Bloomberg, a report from security company iSight Partners says multiple groups of hackers have been targeting retailers since June 2013 using a piece of software known as Kaptoxa.

Washington, D.C. - The National Retail Federation (NRF) has asked an appeals court to uphold a judge’s ruling that the Federal Reserve set its cap on debit card swipe fees far higher than intended by Congress and that the cap needs to be recalculated at a lower level.

Armonk, N.Y. – IBM plans to commit more than $1.2 billion to significantly expand its global cloud footprint. This investment includes a network of data centers designed to bring clients greater flexibility, transparency and control of how they manage their data, run their businesses and deploy their IT operations in the cloud.

Pleasant Ridge, Mich. - Digital engagement firm ePrize today announced a new name, “HelloWorld.” HelloWorld is also releasing a SaaS-based rich engagement platform including the following solutions that can be deployed across microsites, SMS, social, mobile sites, apps and in-store.

● Mobile marketing: SMS, in-app push notifications, custom mobile app experiences, mobile clubs, alerts, mobile coupons and location-based services.

New York – Hair care brand Matrix, a subsidiary of L'Oreal USA, is launching Matrix Class for Glass, a new Google Glass app. Class for Glass features a three-phase rollout, including an exclusive blogger video series, the Matrix Eye for Style Google Glass Salon Chair and a salon professional education platform.

New York -- Neiman Marcus Group on Thursday posted a statement on its website in which it said that, to its knowledge, customers' Social Security numbers and birthdates were not stolen during its holiday security breach. Last week, the retailer revealed that some of customers' payment information had been stolen and that the thieves had made unauthorized charges.

The malicious attack on Target which resulted in a massive data breach has spawned a “we’re all in this together” attitude among the nation’s retailers with the National Retail Federation spearheading the charge for common sense consumer protection measures.

Foremost among them is usage of the more secure Chip and PIN technology in credit and debit cards that offers better encryption of data than the magnetic stripe cards that are prevalent in the U.S.

Adverse weather conditions as well as power outages in some of Dollarama’s core markets throughout December 2013 resulted in a significant reduction in store traffic and the temporary closure of approximately 80 stores, for periods ranging from a few hours to two consecutive days. The majority of the impacted days occurred during the two weekends leading up to Dec. 25.

As the holiday dust clears and we settle into a new year, it’s only fitting that retailers take a moment to reflect on successes of 2013 and identify opportunities for 2014. How can we be more efficient this year? Can we waste less while producing more? Where can we make simple adjustments that add up to big bottom line savings?

Overstock.com has reason to celebrate after a district court in Salt Lake City, Utah, ruled in the online retailer’s favor, denying breach of contract and other claims for damages of $1.7 million.

The company said that in Haddadin v. Overstock, two brothers asserted they were entitled to damages of $1.7 million, plus future royalties, when the it contracted with Ed and Ayman Haddadin for the creation of an auto sales store on the e-tailer's website.