Douglas Kent, global vice president with Avnet Velocity, talks about why there has been renewed interest in supply-chain risk management at the highest level of company operations.

You know all that CRM data you've been so lovingly collecting from loyalty programs, special offers, POS systems and any other way you could find to gather shopper information? It's about to be put at risk by a data broker - and not in the way you expected.

The disposal of computers and other electronic and electrical goods, e-waste, is a growing global problem, with much of the often dangerous junk winding up in emerging countries.

With worries about data breaches and privacy violations mounting by the day, corporations are becoming more aggressive about preventing physical and financial losses, experts say. In some cases, they add, that can involve counterattacks against hackers.

Lowe's Companies announced its acquisition of the majority of assets of Orchard Supply Hardware has been approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Lowe's will acquire 72 Orchard stores for approximately $205m in cash, plus the assumption of payables owed to nearly all of Orchard's supplier partners. Lowe's expects to close the transaction by the end of August.