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A cyberattack can cause irreparable damage to your online store.
you’re free to lose money, crucial data, and reputation.
Whats worse, a successful cyberattack can debilitate overall business viability.
So, you must improve your online stores security to mitigate E-commerce security threats.
Read on to find out.
Why Should You Focus on E-Commerce Security?
The most crucial reason hackers carry out cyberattacks is money, and the E-commerce industry has plenty of it.
So, it is no surprise that E-commerce websites witness a barrage of cyberattacks across the globe.
TheSophos Ransomware Report 2023states that 66% of businesses had a ransomware attack last year.
And the mean ransomware recovery cost (excluding the ransom payment) is $1.82 million.
E-commerce companies manage large volumes of data.
So, even a minor data breach incident can make you financially broke.
The average global cost of a data breach is$ 4.45 million.
Consequently, online payment fraud is common in the industry.
In fact, the E-commerce industry lost more than40 billion USD in 2022due to online payment fraud.
Critical E-Commerce Security Threats You Should Know About
The following are common security threats.
E-commerce businesses are facing these days.
Financial Fraud
The E-commerce industry is plagued with various types of financial fraud.
However, credit card fraud is one of the top E-commerce security threats.
In such a fraudulent activity, cybercriminals use stolen credit card information to make unauthorized transactions on online stores.
Another familiar tactic threat actors employ to commit financial fraud is account takeover.
A successful account takeover attack can lead to fraudulent purchases from the victimss compromised accounts.
Chargebacks are a big challenge to E-commerce websites, hurting their revenues.
An E-commerce chargeback happens when a customer disputes a charge from an online shop on their credit card statement.
And the seller may also have to pay a chargeback fee.
Why does a customer request a chargeback?
Whatever the reason, an e-commerce store is likely to lose money.
The e-commerce store might issue a refund or send another product, losing money and inventory through deception.
This fraud can also cause extra costs like shipping and restocking.
Once cybercriminals have the necessary details of users, they make unauthorized purchases on E-commerce websites.
Spam
Spam is an irrelevant message containing a malicious link.
Spam affects the speed, security, and user experience of your E-commerce website.
DDoS Attacks
The objective of DDoS attacks is to disrupt an E-commerce website and affect its sales.
And if shoppers cannot access your E-commerce website, you will lose sales.
Unsuspecting customers who choose it may unknowingly download malware onto their devices, compromising their security.
As your store transmits malware to victims devices, it will create a negative PR for your brand.
Malware
Malware is one of the biggest E-commerce threats companies are facing today.
Then, the threat actor transmits the stolen data to a domain they manage.
Then, the attacker asks for a ransom in exchange for the decryption key.
So, you must take proactive measures to prevent ransomware.
Trojan Horse
Trojan horses are deceptive software programs that appear legitimate but contain malicious code.
An attacker may distribute a Trojan horse disguised as legitimate applications or files.
So, a trojan horse can compromise the overall security of your e-commerce website.
And then, they can get unauthorized access to your E-commerce websites backend.
Data Breach
A data breach is a significant E-commerce threat.
This can lead to unauthorized access, data theft, or the spreading of malware.
Then, hackers can sell critical data to your competitors.
Equipped with such vital information, your competitors can strategically price their products to lure customers.
After all, who doesnt like to buy a product at the lowest possible price?
Therefore, you must implement one of the best bot detection and mitigation solutions in your company.
In this jot down of attack, a threat actor first makes a connection with your website.
Then, they will run automated programs to guess your password.
So, you must stop using common passwords and create strong passwords with the help of a password tool.
Also Read:Password Spraying Attack: How To Detect and Mitigate Them?
As a result, they can gather sensitive customer data like login credentials, credit card information, etc.
Therefore, you should avoid saving credit card information on your web server.
By implementing a third-party payment processor like PayPal or Stripe, you take payment processing away from your website.
This ensures better security of customers sensitive data.
you’re free to check these popularpayment processing solutionsto find the best fit for your business.
Also, an SSL certificate is a part of PCI DSS compliance.
And many browsers wont open your online store if your E-commerce website doesnt have an SSL certificate.
So, you mustget an SSL certificateon your E-commerce website.
This service compares the billing address the customer gives with the one the bank has on record.
Therefore, implementing non-repudiation measures like digital signatures can prevent customers from denying purchases and reduce E-commerce chargebacks.
So, you should create strong, difficult-to-guess passwords.
Using a password manager in your company can make password management more effortless.
you’re free to check theseopen-source password managersto pick the best password management tool.
And if youre not a fan of cloud-based password management, you could check thison-premise password manager.
Installing a powerful anti-malware program can protect you from various threats.
Also, double-check you have enabled automatic updates on these tools.
Use a combination of upper case, lower case, numbers, and special characters to create complex passwords.
And keep changing your admin passwords from time to time.
When you back up data from your online store, follow the 3-2-1 rule.
you could use anyenterprise data backup solutionto automate the data backup process.
Conclusion
With the unprecedented growth of the E-commerce industry, the E-commerce threats are also multiplied.
Now, malicious actors are targeting online stores more than ever.
Even a minor data breach can jeopardize your stores viability.
