API Security Drives Business Growth for Hibbett

Protecting Hibbett’s Future (and Past) with API Security

The mark of many successful businesses is longevity, and Hibbett certainly fits that description. They have been around longer than many, if not most, retailers in the U.S. Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama and established in 1945, the retailer has successfully distinguished itself from others by building a wide network of convenient locations in smaller cities that aren’t typically served by the larger brand stores, paired with personalized customer service, and of course, comprehensive access to coveted footwear, apparel, and equipment from the nation’s top brands. In the digital era, Hibbett has recognized the importance of robust API security to safeguard their digital assets and ensure seamless customer experiences across their platforms.

Lee Morris, Hibbett’s Senior Director of Security and Infrastructure Architecture, has worked for Hibbett for over 30 years and sees safe, secure technology use as a cornerstone of helping ensure their bright future. In fact, a key part of Hibbett’s success has been innovation. Even though the brand has always been about human connection, they have embraced a web presence, for example. Today, in addition to their storied local presence of physical stores, customers also enjoy the convenience of ordering products from the company’s website (hibbett.com).

Other innovations include leveraging the cloud as part of their infrastructure, and seeing cybersecurity as a function to further, rather than hinder, the business. Security is no longer the department of ‘no’,” said Morris. “With all of the powerful technology solutions we have in place, we are now recognized as a business enabler.”

A hybrid IT infrastructure takes advantage of SaaS products as a key tool. Working with Oracle Cloud. Incorporating Azure Identity Services. The list goes on. And they all depend on APIs. “Hibbett has gone from just a few API processes moving data between a couple of applications, to an environment where almost everything we do is through API communications,” said Stephen Scandrett, Senior Security Engineer at Hibbett Sports.

Application and API Security – Core Requirements

Knowing that a thorough understanding of their API attack surface was crucial to building a solid, long-term foundation for their efforts, API discovery was at the top of their requirements list. Clear visibility and protection of all internal and external APIs would feed into other efforts. Of course, Hibbett needed to be able to deploy and manage the solution without disproportionately consuming valuable IT and security resources. And, given the importance of their web presence, Hibbett knew that both the customer experience and the security of their web applications were paramount, so protection from automated attacks would be necessary.

Why Cequence Security?

Like many organizations, Hibbett began their search by taking advantage of Gartner Peer Insights data to identify the top API security companies. They wanted to make sure that they were not only working with great technology, but leading customer support and service.

Of course, the Hibbett team had technology priorities like robust API discovery and testing and protecting their customer-facing web applications from attack with a leading bot management solution. In the end, Hibbett chose the Cequence Unified API Protection platform, because “Cequence was the only solution that met all of our criteria,” said Morris, and “…Cequence had very positive customer reviews — not only for its API security products and capabilities, but for its high level of customer service as well.”

In the end, the Cequence solution proved to be easy to deploy, requiring no changes to Hibbett’s on-premises, cloud, or SaaS infrastructure.

Seeing into the Future

Not only has Hibbett gained the visibility they were looking for across their APIs, but they also rest easy knowing that their web applications are protected from threats and attacks. Interfacing electronically with partners has also come with Hibbett’s success, and of course, this also happens across APIs, so security plays an important role here as well. The Cequence solution is helping the Hibbett team contribute to the company’s success in an outsized way, automating threat detection capabilities while enabling comprehensive inventory management, compliance, and API protection across all online and in-store brands helps ensure continued success in market.

To learn more about Hibbett’s use of Cequence, see their case study and press release.