IDG Contributor Network: Neiman Marcus data breach settlement tells us plenty about the ROI of security

There is a security ROI dance in retail today. Executives know that they can skimp on security and have a statistically decent chance the company won't get caught by a cyberthief before someone else has their job. The only way that security has a chance of achieving a reasonable ROI is if the pain that results from a breach is massive. It rarely is, as the recent data breach settlement from Neiman Marcus illustrates only too well.

Back in January 2014, Neiman Marcus announced a data breach, even though it had known about it for roughly a month. The chain initially reported that the attack — which happened in 2013, between July 16 and Oct. 30 — impacted 1.1 million customers, a number that the retailer later reduced to 370,385. About 9,200 shoppers experienced actual fraud.

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