Selling online provides you with endless opportunities to make sales, but it also opens your business up to potential security threats. There are a variety of ways hackers can access sensitive payment information. There can be major repercussions if your business is subject to a security breach, both for your finances and your reputation.
The good news? There are several proven ways you can protect your business and the private information you deal with on a daily basis. By taking the measures we discuss below, customers will feel safe shopping with your business and you can avoid any major fraud occurrences.
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What Are the Most Secure Payment Methods?
One of the most secure payment methods is the credit card. There are payment compliance standards that regulate the use of credit cards and protect the data transmitted during transaction processing. Additionally, the money comes from credit card companies rather than customer bank accounts, adding another layer of protection for shoppers.
Debit cards are similarly secure, as they also adhere to payment compliance standards. Major card companies, like Visa, also don’t hold customers responsible for unauthorized payments on debit cards.
Another highly protected form of payment is the mobile wallet. This technology encrypts payment information on a person’s device. Plus, the user must authorize each payment with a fingerprint, face ID, or password.
ACH transfers are also very secure, as banks have security measures in place to protect their customers’ money. Customers can avoid liability for unauthorized transfers by notifying the bank or credit union within a certain timeframe.
8 Ways to Protect Your Business When Taking Payments Online
1. Comply With PCI DSS
The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council is responsible for PCI DSS, a series of compliance regulations for accepting credit card payments. The regulations apply whenever you store, process, or transmit credit card data and can help you keep the information secure.
PCI DSS can seem confusing, especially if you’re a small business owner without an IT team. Pay.com can handle this for you - we have Level 1 PCI DSS compliance, which is the highest level. Pay.com undergoes regular independent auditing and testing to ensure compliance.
2. Use a Secure Ecommerce Platform
Hackers can also get access to payment information due to a lapse in security measures from your ecommerce platform. Assess your current platform and compare what security it has in place compared to others. You can also research ecommerce platforms on the Better Business Bureau for previous security breaches before making a switch.
3. Stay Updated
Cyber attacks occur constantly and hackers are always coming up with new ways to gain access to private information. The companies that provide your software and services create system updates to protect you from these ongoing threats.
Be sure to download any updates for your ecommerce site and antivirus software immediately, as outdated systems are an easy target for attacks. If possible, set up automatic downloads so that you never miss an update.
4. Tokenize Transactions
You can ensure that your credit card transactions are secure by tokenizing the card details in transit. With tokenization, you replace payment details with randomly-created, unique identification symbols. These symbols retain essential information but are not connected to any account or person.
Pay.com tokenizes all credit card details in transit. This replaces sensitive data with a non-sensitive substitute, so even if hackers did get into the servers, they couldn’t steal credit card details because they’re simply not there.
5. Avoid Storing Customer Payment Data
It’s best to avoid storing customer payment data entirely so that you don’t have information to lose in the event of a cyber attack. Once each transaction is complete, you should get rid of any payment information. If you do need to store data, like a customer’s name, you’ll need to take measures to protect it, like encrypting the data or storing it on a private network.
6. Verify All Transactions
With online transactions, the card is never present, so you can’t physically confirm that the customer is the cardholder. However, there are a variety of ways to verify the transaction, including:
- Requiring the customer to enter their security code or CVV number
- Checking for an address verification (AVS) match
- Looking for suspicious patterns, like abnormally large orders or orders for geographic areas known for a high rate of fraud
- Offering personal verification, like allowing customers to self-verify via a driver’s license or passport, for larger purchases
7. Use 3D Secure 2.0 (3DS2)
Pay.com adds another layer of authentication with 3DS2. This security measure takes several factors into account, like transaction size and location, which are set by credit card companies. When a transaction is potentially suspicious, 3DS2 requires that the customer verifies their identity by entering a code on the website that they receive in a text or email.
8. Have a Strong IT Environment
If you have your own website, rather than using an ecommerce platform to host your site, you’ll need to take additional security precautions. Your web server, web host, and more could undergo an attack at any time.
Stay prepared with a strong IT environment, including a firewall solution and intrusion-detection systems/intrusion-prevention systems (IDS/IPS). These tools will help decrease the risk of a threat, as well as monitor for threats and block them when they do arise.
The Benefits of Working with Pay.com as Your Payment Service Provider
You can depend on Pay.com to provide secure transactions every time. With the highest level of PCI DSS compliance, the system undergoes regular independent testing. Plus, you can display the PCI DSS logo on your checkout page to make sure your customers feel safe.
With 3DS2, we add another layer of authentication to any suspicious transactions, ensuring that the person making the purchase is also the cardholder. Pay.com also tokenizes all credit card details in transit, so in the extremely unlikely event that hackers do get into the servers, there would be no information to steal.
Security aside, Pay.com also provides a great user experience for you and your customers. You can set up a completely customized checkout page that looks and feels just like the rest of your website. Your developers can integrate with the API or SDK to create a seamless checkout experience for your customers.
Click here to get started with Pay.com now!
The Bottom Line
Unfortunately, hackers are always working to find new ways to get access to private information, which means security must be an ongoing effort. Thankfully, there are a variety of measures you can put in place to do the hard work for you.
It all starts with choosing the best ecommerce platform and having a strong IT environment. Be sure to verify transactions, keep your systems up to date, and avoid storing user data.
It’s also critical that you choose a secure payment service provider. With Pay.com, you get the highest level of PCI-DSS compliance, 3DS2, tokenization, and more. Click here to find out how you can get started.
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