Cashing in on people’s vulnerability to shop online, ecommerce websites are a rage everywhere these days. Although you can see new shopping websites spring forth almost every day, how safe is it to shop on these websites?
Yes, website owners do take the pain of trying to keep their servers secure but it isn’t unusual to hear that some smart-ass hackers again found a loophole in the security system and managed to gain access to customers’ data.
So you may be the owner of an ecommerce store who’s using a software as a service (Saas) platform like Shopify or Yahoo store. Or, you might be someone who has hired a company like Open Store to make your ecommerce store and take care of its security; here are a few basics of the security of an ecommerce website you must know:
Use Data Encryption
Data encryption is basic and will not hold up against strong hacking tools. Your database should be encrypted especially for sensitive data like credit card numbers, passwords of customers, payment information, tax ids and other confidential information.
Same goes for the security of the forms that your members fill in when they join your website. You must ensure that they are safe from hackers as the information could be easily exploited causing damage to the reputation of your website and the customer. The trick is to ensure that the software you are using resists exploitation or code injection via forms. Or you can use a cloud based solution like netsuite erp, where the service provider handles the security.
Credit Card Numbers Should Not Be Stored
When you don’t store sensitive and exploitable information, there are no chances that the hacker will misuse it. Many websites follow this to be saved from the hassles. However, if you still want to store payment information, follow the mandatory PCI standards or use an authorized payment gateway to do it for you.
So, basically it is best that you avoid storing credit card numbers and other payment details but if you insist on doing so, make sure that you secure it in the best way possible.
Limit Access To Information As Per Requirement
Most often than not, frauds are perpetrated by insiders like employees and vendors. To solve this problem, many companies follow the policy of employee right segregation. This entails accounts that are created with rights specific to an employee’s profile. This would lead to safety of information without creating any sort of hindrance in the employee’s work.
Apart from this, changing passwords regularly is always a healthy practice. When a website’s address begins with http:// or https://, it means that the connection between a customer’s computer and the website is encrypted by SSL certification and is safe. Even though the connection is safe, it does not guarantee that hackers won’t be able to break into the website for retrieving information. So, don’t simply take SSL certification to be the ultimate security for your website.
These are some basic non-technical points that will help in getting you started with website security. The technical aspects are huge and may require you to hire professional help to maintain the security of your website.
About the Author
Brenda Lyttle is a shopaholic and an Internet marketer. She strongly recommends that you take the security of your shopping website seriously. If you’re still thinking about making an ecommerce store, she recommends using the services of Open Source for all-in-one package solutions. For more information about available packages, please click here.