If you are running an eCommerce store, you do not need to be preached about the importance of keeping it secure. Under protected and unprotected online shopping sites are continually being threatened by fraud, viruses, cybercrime and other security threats rampant on the internet. Customers are also wary of having their sensitive information compromised and usually depend on the trust signals displayed on the websites when deciding which eCommerce store, they can trust.
If you have doubts about the extent to which your online business is safe from fraud, read on to see how you can take care of your suspicions. We bring you ten crucial tricks to help you wrap your eCommerce store from fraud protection.
1. Use a secure eCommerce engine
When building your eCommerce store, stick to an inherently safe eCommerce engine – prefer security over bells and whistles if you must make a trade-off.
Before you take your store online, ensure that the admin panel is not accessible to the public and hackers. To achieve this, change the standard admin panel to something custom, containing both numbers and characters. Consider installing extensions that provide 2-step authentication for more robust protection.
2. Ensure compliance with standard security practices
Make sure your store meets PCI DSS standards accepted by the significant financial establishments – this not only makes the checkouts safe for your customers but also builds trust in your users.
Installing EV SSL certificate for an eCommerce site enables the secure HTTPS protocol to encrypt all transmitted data. This protects the transactions from the snooping eyes of hackers who may otherwise use a man-in-the-middle attack to steal the information being exchanged between the web browser and the website.
3. Verify cards and billing addresses
During the checkout process, ask for the CVV/CVC number usually printed on the reverse of the card– this ensures that you are dealing with the actual card owner and not somebody who may have stolen the credit/debit card number.
Verify the stored card billing address against the address provided by the customer to doubly ensure that the user transacting with your website is the actual holder of the card.
4. Compare IPs with billing addresses
Compare IPs of the users with their billing addresses to spot suspicious activity. For instance, if the card carries a US billing address but the purchase is originating from an IP address in Nigeria, alarm bells should go off.
It is also recommended that you inhibit checkout for orders whose IP address is not within the areas you offer shipping to.
5. Don’t store sensitive information
Do not commit any sensitive data to your database. Saving your customers’ credit/debit card numbers, CVV2 information and expiry dates give cybercriminals an opportunity of stealing the confidential data if your database gets compromised.
Merchants who stay away from storing confidential information are less likely to suffer expensive, reputation-damaging and time-consuming breaches of customer data.
6. Limit number of declined transactions
Scammers often use brute-force techniques, trying different card number combinations until they find the one that works. You can prevent such fraud by limiting the number of declined transactions initiated by a user.
You can also implement the same restriction for malevolent IPs.
7. Manage refunds carefully
Stay watchful for any suspicious activity that suggests that the user asking for monetary reimbursement is not the original shopper. Check for suspicious IPs, stolen Purchase IDs and a high number of refund attempts from the same user.
Collect customer signatures when possible – this will prevent you from being cheated into giving quick refunds to someone who has not made the purchases.
8. Use reputed security extensions
Make use of high-quality security extensions that can track questionable transactions on your eCommerce store. Consider engaging security services that combat fraud by analyzing and profiling.
Using high profile safety services that provide your website with a ‘trust seal’ – this not only exterminates risks but also boosts customer confidence. Employing reputed services such as Verisign, McAfee, and TRUSTe helps you track vulnerabilities in real-time and identify fraud quickly.
9. Use device fingerprinting extensions
Using device fingerprinting to detect fraud is exceptionally effective – it is implemented using fingerprinting extensions available for different eCommerce platforms. The extensions analyze various properties, such as operating system, browser, location, and language.
They help you prevent fraud at the source by quickly spotting all fraudulent attempts and blocking the involved users. Signifyd, Sift Science, Simility and Riskified are some noteworthy examples of device fingerprinting offerings.
10. Keep your software updated
It would help if you stayed on top of installing regular software updates for your eCommerce engine, templates, themes, and extensions. You can also consider automating the process by changing your website’s settings for the same, so you do not end up falling behind if you do not get time to do it yourself.
New updates for your website software fix the latest known vulnerabilities in the software and not installing the latest patches leaves you open to cyberattacks and online fraud.
Finally, you should follow these tips to wrap your store from fraud protections. Stick to these guidelines, and you will have to spend lesser time worrying about security and have more time to grow your online business. Customer trust will increase, leading to more sales, and you will not have to deal with the consequences of online fraud. I wish you all the best – stay safe from fraud and have loads of success with your eCommerce store.