When you start an online store, there is one thing you can be sure of: a hacker or thief will be looking for ways to get your customers’ money. Although e-commerce is now the ‘in thing’ and generating billions – scratch that – trillions of dollars a year in revenue, it is also one of the most vulnerable industries.
In 2014, e-commerce breaches in security represented 60 percent of the total breaches in retail. Hackers are always trying to find new ways to steal sensitive information, and the internet provides many opportunities for information to become vulnerable.
The last thing you need when you launch your online store is to experience a major security breach. Your customers trust you to keep their information private. If your site is hacked, your customers will lose their confidence in you. They’ll go to the competition.
It could get even worse. You could end up facing law suits, having to compensate your customers for the breach. A good example is the case of Target, which ended up spending over $146 million in reimbursement and insurance fees over a security breach.
If you want to protect your investment and your customers, you need to ensure the security of your online store.
The Basic Security Measures
Whether you’re planning to launch an online store or already have an online store, the security of your store and the privacy of the information your customers give you should be first and foremost on your mind. Here are some basic security measures you should take to ensure the security of your e-commerce site.
1. Choose an E-commerce Platform that is Secure
There are several e-commerce platforms available today. Whether you choose to be hosted or self-hosted, it is important that the e-commerce platform you select is secure.
One of the advantages of opting for a fully hosted enterprise e-commerce platform like Shopify, is that you don’t have to worry about security issues. These issues are left to the host to figure out. You can therefore concentrate on your primary task: your business’ growth.
Read reviews on different platforms before you make your choice. Consider the policies offered by different platforms as well as the level of security provided before making a final decision.
2. Never Store Sensitive Customer Information
Do you really need to store sensitive data that your customers submit when making purchases? Storing information such as credit card numbers and card verification value codes (CVV2) will put your site at risk of being exposed. Hackers can find ways to steal this information and access your customers’ bank accounts. Don’t put your customers through this.
It’s important to comply with PCI Standards, which strictly forbid the storage of personal information. If you’re on a hosted platform, ensure that your host complies to these standards.
3. Use an Up-to-date Secure Connection that is PCI-compliant for Checkout
If you want to sell anything online, an SSL certificate is a must. This provides a secure connection between the server and the customer’s browser. Customers will be looking out for evidence of security by checking the URL. A secure page’s URL should read https. The ‘s’ at the end means ‘secure.’
Ensure that your SSL certificate is compliant with PCI standards. If you’re on a hosted platform, this will be the responsibility of your host. However, it’s still important to check that your host complies with these standards.
These are only the basic strategies you should implement for your e-commerce platform, but by far the most essential to getting your operation off the ground and gaining the trust of your customers. After all, without the trust of your customers, your e-commerce platform is next to worthless, no matter how great the products you offer.
