Retailers are in the business to sell, not to be stolen from. And they don't set up shop to buy security products from companies like Cisco. However, attackers who target retailers have discovered that it's much more lucrative to shoplift virtually rather than physically. So even if you focus on security rather than selling, you face a daunting task.

The challenge of retail security is that it gets more complex by the minute. The combination of mobile devices, distributed services, increased customer expectations, virtual systems, and changing business goals creates a huge attack surface for fraudsters. Add in a pantheon of security vendors offering specialized products that don't always work well together as well as a dwindling supply of qualified security personnel, and feelings of frustration and futility are understandable.

Our industry desperately needs a resource that addresses the problem from end to end and makes security easier to understand. Enter Cisco SAFE, a comprehensive and credible solution portfolio. SAFE uses a model to organize retail networks into areas that can be more easily understood from a security perspective. It looks at the threats that exist and the best practices available to defend against them. It helps manage the design, build, and maintenance of today's retail networks.

SAFE provides "how to" guides tested in Cisco's laboratories for complex security challenges. It maps your threats to the security capabilities you need at this time, which can help you avoid overspending and overcomplicating the defenses you need to protect your business.

Come see me at the National Retail Federation show in New York. At a Big Idea session, I'll be speaking about how Cisco SAFE helps simplify retail security. We'll be in Room 4, Level 3 of the Expo Hall, on Monday, January 18, at 12:45 p.m.-1:30 p.m. Learn more.

I look forward to meeting you there!