Cyber crime is a prevalent issue that plagues many online businesses today. Ecommerce stores, in particular, are more vulnerable to cyber threats, especially given the fact that their business is primarily dependent on the functionality of their online stores.
There are many cyber threats that eCommerce stores need to protect themselves from. These include password breaches, malware attacks, phishing schemes, credit card fraud, and DDOS attacks. Regardless of this fact, today’s consumers, as well as regulated compliance standards, expect you to take proper precautions to minimize or eliminate the impact of data breaches.
To protect the business from these and many other forms of cyber crime, an eCommerce business can take several measures to secure itself.
Stay on track with system updates
The frequency of cyber attacks has increased significantly over the years, and it is expected that cyber security spending will reach $133.7 billion by 2022. Many of today’s cyber crimes result from poorly managed systems that lack critical updates responsible for hardening network security. When malicious attackers look for potential targets, they often focus on businesses with aging or outdated systems that contain vulnerabilities in their source code.
Ecommerce stores are often dependent on other platforms, such as Woocommerce and Shopify, to manage all areas of their operations. These platforms continuously release updates over time that require the attention of administrators to download and execute. The updates are often designed to fix critical security gaps in third-party applications and website plugins that can increase the likelihood of security breaches occurring. It’s essential for the security team at an eCommerce store to consistently check for updates and ensure the business is protected from all kinds of vulnerabilities.
Enforce stronger password management
Though not every form of cyber attack is easy to avoid, many can be mitigated by applying best practices when securing individual systems and applications. This can be accomplished by enforcing more secure password management processes across the entire organization as well as with clients and customers.
Enforcing stronger security protocols on an eCommerce platform can be a tough balancing act, especially when building online stores that are both secure and convenient to use. However, ensuring secure browsing and checkout experiences should always be prioritized above other website features. Requiring passwords with a minimum length of eight characters and a combination of upper and lower case letters should be standard business practice. Including numbers and special characters in your passwords is also encouraged and can significantly reduce the likelihood of credentials becoming compromised. Another critical best practice is to mandate regular password changes with customers and internal staff.
Ensure you use an SSL certificate
Another essential component of protecting your eCommerce business is ensuring you encrypt your data. You can do so by using a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). SSL certificates encrypt data transmissions between website servers and the user’s device, maximizing the security of credit card numbers, login credentials, and other personal data. Experienced eCommerce companies know the importance of a secure sockets layer (SSL) certificate many of the world’s top eCommerce stores use it an industry standards
SSL certificates are a necessity as search engines like Google use them as identifiers when differentiating between legitimate and malicious websites. ECommerce sites that lack the use of SSL certificates will inevitably rank poorly on Google’s search engine results pages.
Conclusion
Internet security is becoming an increasingly crucial element for every successful eCommerce business. By following these practical cyber security tips for protecting an online store, organizations can build better trust with their customers and reduce the likelihood of encountering negative financial impacts.
