In a world where customer trust is more fragile than ever, your security stance is the underpinning in every customer interaction. Whether you’re leading IT for a scrappy mid-market team or steering the ship for a sprawling enterprise, one truth holds steady—security isn’t just an IT checkbox anymore. It’s a brand promise.

That was the central theme in the latest installment of our CX Mastery webinar series, “Build customer trust with security as your first priority.” If you missed it, don’t worry—we’ve got you covered with the highlights (and a handy on-demand link as well).

The customer trust equation has changed.

Back in the day, delivering a great customer experience was about fast answers and friendly agents. Today? It’s about that and much more, including making customers feel they can trust you. In the webinar, 8x8’s Todd Cook and Brother Iberia’s IT Director, Javier Humanes, dropped some serious truth bombs: breaches don’t just cost companies millions—they erode customer confidence in ways that are hard to recover from.

So, let’s talk numbers: According to 2024 data from IBM, the average cost of a breach is now $4.88 million. That’s just the recovery. Factor in fines—up to $14.8 million in some cases—and the stakes are sky-high. The kicker? More than half of companies that experience a breach also take a major hit to their funding and market reputation.

According to Yahoo! Finance, more than 80% of consumers worldwide have abandoned an online brand in the past 12 months because of data privacy concerns. So, if you’re wondering whether “investing in security” is worth it? Not investing definitely costs more.

Compliance isn’t optional (and on-prem might be holding you back).

Javier didn’t mince words: moving off their aging on-prem system was the smartest decision Brother Iberia made in the last 10–15 years. Why? Because legacy systems are more vulnerable, more challenging to maintain, and infinitely more expensive to scale securely.

It’s not just about patching holes—it’s about future-proofing. Cloud platforms like 8x8 bring built-in compliance with regulations like GDPR, PCI, and HIPAA and automate the heavy lifting with features like:

  • End-to-end encryption.
  • Tokenization and real-time monitoring.
  • AI-powered fraud detection.
  • Secure IVR payments and encrypted links.

It might be time to rethink if your current infrastructure can’t do that out of the box.

Cloud-based CX is the new gold standard for business continuity.

Here’s another jaw-dropper from Javier: “Having a cloud-based solution gives us 24/7 service continuity, international data backup, and the peace of mind that we’re not relying on a single local server or one team’s working hours.”

In other words, the cloud isn’t just a fancy upgrade; it’s why Brother’s customer service team can operate seamlessly, stay compliant, and adapt to real-time needs. It’s also why their employee experience has improved, with less stress, fewer manual processes, and better tools at their fingertips.

The balancing act: Innovation vs. risk.

There’s no doubt AI is transforming CX, but as Javier points out, it’s a double-edged sword. Innovation brings opportunity but also risk. The trick? Keep your customer in the center of the conversation.

Here’s how innovative IT teams are striking the balance:

  • Automate the routine. Use AI to handle non-value-added tasks.
  • Keep the human touch. Make it easy to escalate to a live agent—fast.
  • Maintain context. Use platforms that pass conversation history seamlessly between bots and agents.
  • Protect data like it's gold (because it is). AI should enhance trust, not erode it.

The bottom line.

Organizations need an approach that goes beyond traditional IT infrastructure to address these challenges. 8x8’s AI-powered platform provides IT leaders with the tools to modernize communication, fortify security, and enable seamless customer engagement.

  • Connected, AI-driven engagement: Enable every department to interact with customers with complete context and continuity, eliminating silos or slow handoffs.
  • Enterprise-grade security and compliance: Protect transactions and customer data with PCI-compliant, AI-driven fraud prevention.
  • Seamless Microsoft Teams integration: Extend Teams beyond internal collaboration with enterprise voice, reliable PSTN connectivity, and real-time analytics.
  • Cost efficiency and scalability: Consolidate communication and CX solutions to reduce complexity, lower costs, and future-proof operations.

Lead the future of IT; don’t chase it

Security is the backbone of great CX—and the best IT leaders know it. From securing transactions to simplifying compliance, from real-time insights to always-on support, your ability to scale and succeed depends on how secure your CX foundation is.

If you’re ready to step up your IT strategy—and show your customers (and your CFO) that CX starts with trust—it’s time to hear the full story.

Watch the on-demand webinar: Build customer trust with security as your first priority.

You’ll walk away with practical strategies, real-world lessons, and maybe even a fresh perspective on how IT can lead the charge in customer loyalty.

Because in today’s digital world, security isn’t just an IT job—it’s a CX differentiator.