In the present digital era, online business transactions are inevitable. Business operations have shifted from the physical space to online platforms, such as e-commerce websites, Facebook Marketplace, Pinterest, and Twitter, among many others. You can transact finances online, or even business documents. With remote work now taking over in many firms, you can transact job contracts at the comfort of your living room or home office. For financial transactions, you can pay for your goods and services, without having to visit your bank.
However, scammers and cybercriminals have invaded online businesses and have already robbed many people of thousands or millions of dollars. Therefore, you ought to exercise vigilance and secure all your financial and document transactions for the security of your business data. Trust and confidence from your customers and business partners while doing business with you online are crucial. Thus, you have to employ robust cybersecurity measures in your business.
As a result, this article outlines eight ways your business can secure your transactions. These are:
Electronic Signatures
Business documents ought to be verifiable when it comes to authenticity and originality. With good technology that allows you to sign your digital documents online, you can exchange business information securely online. With electronic signatures, you can authorize important business transactions and processes. You can also give remote workers contracts to sign online after a remote onboarding process. Moreover, you can sign other PDF materials, like legal documents and invoices.
What you need is good software with an electronic signature service for creating signature fields and sending the documents to other people via email to append their signatures, too. You can either upload a handwritten signature or write an electronic signature using a stylus pen, trackpad, or a mouse. Additionally, some software can send you notifications when every concerned party has signed the document.
Avoid Storing Customer Payment Data
Customer information used in the payment of products and services shouldn’t be stored. Storing this data is to risk it to online criminals and fraudsters. In case this data is stolen by a scammer, it can damage the reputation of your business. There’s no telling how much financial loss it can cause to your business as your loyal customers may choose to leave to other firms. You also suffer the risk of being sued, depending on the regulations of your country or state.
Ecommerce transactions require clients to give their names and payment details through a form. However, it’s advisable to ensure that once the transaction is completed, this data is deleted. Where you would love your customers to save their details for a better shopping experience online, secure this information using a trusted e-commerce service. Bespoke services for storing and encrypting financial data might be a good option for you.
SSL Certificate
This is a website security measure that’s known as security sockets layer (SSL) protocol. This cybersecurity protocol is mostly preferred by eCommerce platforms to encrypt their customers’ sensitive information, like credit card details, when the data is passing across a web browser and a web server during online payment. To Protect website data, information and transactions, online store owners must have EV SSL Certificates installed on your website.
Use PCI DSS
For all websites that need to transact customer financial data online, they’re required to meet the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) protocol regulations that were established in 2006. This security measure is meant to ensure that your customers’ financial security and safety are guaranteed.
Before your website is allowed to transact, PCI DSS tests for vulnerabilities within your online transaction system. In case some loopholes are identified, you have to seal them before activating the system for use by your customers.
Partner With Reputable Ecommerce Platforms And Processors
Online security isn’t a light matter. It’s difficult to manage cybersecurity from your in-house team. As a result, it’s good to choose a reputable ecommerce platform and payment processor. In this case, all the work for ensuring secure online security is relinquished to this third party.
However, you shouldn’t rush the process of identifying a trusted ecommerce platform. Research on each one that you find and note the kind of businesses that they work for. Trusted ecommerce platforms may be working for big industries, which reflects their level of trust.
Verify Address
Most online traders use the address verification system (AVS) to check whether the billing address given by the cardholder resembles the one associated with the card. When a debit or credit card transaction is taking place, your address is verified as a requirement for authorization of the transaction. The credit or debit card processor sends a certain code to the trader, informing them if the transaction should be allowed or rejected.
However, there might be a mismatch of addresses due to outdated information or misspelling. Even though AVS is a good security measure for online financial transactions, it might not be effective in preventing illegal transactions with credit or debit cards. Also, it might affect the user experience if not properly executed.
Implement Encryption And Tokenization
Encryption and tokenization are effective cybersecurity protocols for ensuring online data security. They’re differentiated by how they handle data.
With tokenization, it removes data out of a system and replaces it with another value. The information is replaced with a random combination of characters. In case a fraudster gains access to the token, it would be useless as the real information has been replaced by the token. Thus, tokenization is excellent in improving the security of online payment details, as well as it reduces the possibility of a data breach. As a result, instead of using the 16 digits in a credit card number, a token is used for the transaction.
On the other hand, encryption doesn’t change the information, but assigns it a security key that should be used to access it. Encryption is a different layer of security, especially for information that has to be stored. It’s important to note that there are several encryption tools for securing online payments.
Use Antivirus
Antivirus software guarantee advanced security for your business and protect your devices that are connected online, such as servers. Also, an antivirus can block access to your network by malicious traffic. There are several trusted antivirus software out there that you can purchase to help enhance your business transactions online.
Wrapping Up
The future of online business transactions is projected to rise in leaps and bounds rather than shrink. This might be because marketing has embraced online platforms, thus, it’s easy to close a business deal online. Because online customers are strangers, the best way to deal with them is to provide an efficient platform for their purchasing. Furthermore, you have to inspire their confidence and make them trust your business through secure and efficient online business transactions.
Emy Rabuga
Emy Rabuga is a cyber and data security expert and consultant. She has been in the cybersecurity field for 15 years. She shares her skills and knowledge through blogging and guest posting online. When she isn’t working online, she likes to spend her free time cycling, reading, and swimming.
Also Read: How do credit cards work? Everything you want to know about Credit Card
