Page 94 - Cyber Defense eMagazine September 2025

Artificial Intelligence Has Changed What Cyber Defense Means

for the Retail Industry

By Jason Lewkowicz, Managing Director – Cybersecurity, America’s Retail Sector Lead, Ernst &
Young LLP

To secure their organizations from an evolving artificial intelligence (AI) cyber threat landscape, retail
CISOs must prepare for external attacks and establish consistent internal safeguards.

It’s not clear whether retail industry chief information security officers (CISOs) are ready for the reality of
how AI has changed the cybersecurity landscape for their organizations. In 2024, it was estimated that
the retail sector is targeted by over 500,000 AI-driven cyber attacks each day. Despite the seeming
nonstop wave of threats, in a recent EY survey, only 40% of retail CISOs perceive AI as a potential
security threat to their organizations. And even those leaders may not be viewing the generative AI
(GenAI) cyber defense threat through the right lens.

Beyond the headlines

Media reports about AI and cybersecurity usually focus on how cyber criminals are using emerging AI
tools to enhance attacks on companies, so we can be confident retail CISOs understand that AI has

Cyber Defense eMagazine – September 2025 Edition 94
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