River Island, the popular UK fashion retailer, has taken significant steps to strengthen its security model amid increasing digital threats. With over 200 stores across the country and a robust e-commerce platform, River Island’s InfoSec team, led by Sunil Patel, has implemented automated solutions to ensure the safety of its assets. Now, the company is moving away from manual report creation and towards automated dashboards. With this change, IT can better maximize the value of its security investments and contribute to improving overall operational efficiencies.
Sunil Patel is the current InfoSec Officer for River Island. He is joined by a dedicated team of three members who protect the retailer’s physical stores, e-commerce operations, major distribution center and head corporate office. Even with an array of security solutions deployed, Patel explained that most of these were underused. He estimated that the company was “only getting about 5-6% of the possible value” from some of its existing products, highlighting the need for a more effective approach to security management.
Transitioning to Automated Solutions
River Island’s security team had a big task on their hands. They found it difficult to have a consolidated way to monitor their internet usage. That gap made it difficult to know how to best combat vulnerabilities. Patel’s brave and decisive action tackled the injustice. He moved to a focus on automated dashboards that provide 24/7, dynamic access to the company’s high-level security posture. These dashboards make it very clear what vulnerabilities are currently exposed, what has been remediated, and what still needs to be addressed.
Patel’s automated system doesn’t just make those assets more visible, it enables their team to automatically scan exposed assets for known vulnerabilities. This proactive approach is a big step from the old ways, where security teams would base their state of posture on ad-hoc reporting.
“One of my goals was to take the security team out of the equation completely from a process perspective,” – Sunil Patel
This change allows the team to refocus efforts on tracking and reporting progress. Rather than focus on all the little things, they can focus on winning in fewer, better ways. Whether it’s merchandising, finance or logistics, River Island has simplified its ways of working. This whole new approach provides a more sustainable security model that reduces staff workload while maximizing effectiveness.
Responding to Emerging Threats
The need for a better security infrastructure was made glaringly obvious when looking back on recent cyber disasters. When the Log4j vulnerability came out, it was a really scary time for a lot of businesses. Thanks to Patel’s foresight, River Island was sure to come out completely unscathed.
“When Log4j hit, our CIO asked if we were affected. I could tell him straight away: ‘We’re good – Intruder’s scanned for it and we’re in the clear,’” – Sunil Patel
This quick and effective response not only calmed executives but built trust in the new automated processes introduced. River Island’s CIO expressed relief at the lack of issues, indicating that the automated monitoring provided by Intruder allowed them to operate with greater peace of mind.
A New Era of Monitoring
River Island is still in the process of developing its security structure. Echoing that transformation, Patel points to his team’s evolution from perceived “nagging manager” to currently being thought of as a positive-encouraging monitoring force.
“We’re not the nagging manager anymore. We just monitor and make sure things are progressing,” – Sunil Patel
By focusing on maintaining oversight rather than constantly interrupting other departments, Patel’s team has fostered a collaborative environment where security is integrated into daily operations rather than treated as an isolated concern.
This is a perfect example of this move – the Patel and River Island CIO partnership. In a recent interview, Patel noted that they barely do one-on-one meetings at all. The CIO responded with amusement, stating, “That’s a good thing – it means nothing’s broken.” Automated systems provide a layer of confidence in management. They rely on the assumption that security measures are being properly enforced without the level of hands-on scrutiny.