You can do your best in the ecommerce business and attract customers to your well-designed website. Maybe you have a variety of unique products or provide reliable services at a fair price. You may also have a spotless marketing campaign. But there is one more aspect that you cannot forget about - online security. All your attempts to run a successful ecommerce business can go to waste if you lose your money and your customers' trust.
Where there is money, there are criminals, and ecommerce businesses have become a tempting target for hackers. Ecommerce websites hold a lot of sensitive data about the customers, their business information, credit card details, and personal data. If you want to make their shopping experience without the risk of stealing that information, and you don't want to lose the reputation of a trustworthy company, you need to make cybersecurity your priority. Below you can find the best security practices to minimize the risk of a cyberattack on your online store.
1. Train Your Employees
Plenty of cyberattacks happen due to human error. If your employees are not aware of the wide range of cyber threats, they become susceptible. Sending regular chat messages with clients' sensitive data, responding to suspicious emails, opening potentially dangerous links - all of those seemingly harmless steps might lead to severe consequences.
Phishing is a type of social engineering techniques where attacks are based on tricks and manipulations designed to gain access to the secured data. One of the preventive measures involves training your employees on the topic of security policies and staying wary about who has access to sensitive information. You can simulate a phishing attack with social engineering testing services to show your employees how suspicious text messages, emails, and phishing might look. Making them aware of the dangers is key to improving your cybersecurity.
2. Secure the Data with PCI Compliance
If you run an online store, you accept credit card payments on your website. Your customers give you their personal details and trust you that it's all kept private with your company being the only entity that has access to them. That's why there is a requirement for all online merchants to have their websites PCI Compliant.
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) was established in 2006 and applies to all companies that process, transmit, and store any payment card data digitally. If you don't stick to those requirements, you might be fined even 100,000 $ per month. PCI compliance involves administrative and technological solutions that aim for reducing the risk of fraud. And if you're not sure how to implement these security measures, there are companies that conduct audits to detect potential vulnerabilities and help you meet these standards.
3. Switch to HTTPS
The first step to moving your website to HTTPS is obtaining an SSL Certificate from your hosting company. SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer, and it helps you to authenticate and encrypt the links. It's worth mentioning that it has become a PCI standard, so not implementing it is a breach. Website encryption is crucial to your ecommerce business security as it keeps the customer data safe and allows them to leave their sensitive information on your website without any risk.
Moreover, aside from being a security measure, switching to HTTPS has other advantages than preventing security threats. Firstly, in the URL bar, the visitors of your online store immediately see that the website you host is safe, and it can encourage them to make the purchase. Secondly, it helps your page to rank higher in Google's search results.
4. Add Additional Authentication Factors
For many customers, authenticating their data for 'the hundredth time' might be tiring. But it's of great importance to be sure that both the seller and the customer are real. Of course, a strong password and a unique username have been crucial since ecommerce was born. However, most passwords can be cracked, even if they are strong. It's not enough in a time of increased data breaches and identity thefts.
A 2-step verification process or multi-factor verification ensures you and your clients that each participant of the transaction is real. Your ecommerce platform can require additional customer information, such as a verification code or phone number to verify someone’s identity. It adds an extra safety layer to your ecommerce business.
Conclusion
More and more stores are moving online, and the ecommerce business is probably the future of our shopping experiences. However, especially the small and inexperienced companies are now the perfect target for hackers. Cyberattack methods become smarter and more sophisticated each year, so the proper protection of your business and your consumers' personal information is a must if you want to run your online business successfully.
Implement those four processes to make your website less vulnerable to cyberattacks, and keep pace with technological advancements to protect your customers as efficiently as possible. It provides them with the best shopping experience they can trust, and it allows you to sleep calmly and keep your money safe.
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