E-commerce security issues

and its management

By,
Gopika Sanjith
 What is e-security?
Electronic security system refers to any electronic equipment that
could perform security operations like surveillance, access control,
alarming or an intrusion control to a facility or an area which uses
power from mains and also a power backup like a battery, etc.
Classification of Electronic Security
System:
Based on functioning categorizing electronic security system as follows:
• CCTV Surveillance Security System
• Fire Detection/Alarming System
• Access Control/Attendance System
MAJOR E- COMMERCE THREATS AND ISSUES
• Financial Frauds
• Spam
• Phishing
• DDoS Attacks
• Brute Force Attacks
• SQL Injections
• XSS
• Trojan Horses
Financial Frauds
• Hackers make unauthorized transactions
• They wipe out significant amounts of money creating huge losses.
• Some fraudsters also file requests for fake refunds or returns.

Spam
• Spam are mostly send through emails.
• emails are known as a strong medium for higher sales.
• Comments on your blog or contact forms are also an open invitation for online
spammers where they leave infected links.
• They often send them via social media inbox and wait for you to click on such
messages.
• spamming not only affects your website’s security, but it also damages your
website speed too.
Phishing
•  Hackers masquerade as legitimate businesses
• And send emails to your clients to trick them into revealing their sensitive
information .
• They present them with a fake copy of your legitimate website or anything that
allows the customer to believe the request is coming from the business.
•  This technique helps them to access your login information or other personal
data which the hacker can exploit as per his benefit.

DDoS Attacks
• Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and DOS (Denial of Service) attacks
• Aim to disrupt your website and affect overall sales.
• These attacks flood your servers with numerous requests until they succumb to them and
your website crashes.
Brute Force Attacks
• These attacks target your online store’s admin panel in an attempt to figure out
your password by brute-force. 
•  It uses programs that establish a connection to your website and use every
possible combination to crack your password. 
• You can protect yourself against such attacks by using a strong, complex
password.

SQL Injections
• Structured Query Language
• Are cyber-attacks intended to access your database by targeting your query
submission forms.
• They inject malicious code in your database, collect the data and then delete it later
on.
XSS
• Hackers target your website visitors by infecting your online store with malign
code.
• You can safeguard yourself against it by implementing Content Security Policy.

Trojan Horses
•  It is one amongst the worst network security threats
• Attackers use these programs to swipe sensitive information from their computers
with ease.
Ecommerce Security Solutions

1. Switch to HTTPS 7. Employ Multi-Layer Security

2. Secure Your Servers and Admin 8. Stay Updated
Panels
9. Opt for a Solid Ecommerce
3. Payment Gateway Security Platform
4. Antivirus and Anti-Malware 10. Train Your Staff Better
Software
11. Keep an Eye out for Malicious
5. Use Firewalls Activity
6. Secure your website with SSL 12. Educate Your Clients
certificates
 Switch to HTTPS
• Hyper Text Transfer protocol
• Using outdated HTTP protocols makes you vulnerable to attacks.
•  It is strongly recommend that you switch to HTTPS which displays the trustee green lock sign
that says “secured” next to the URL bar on your customer’s computer.
• HTTPS protocols not only protect the sensitive information users submit, but their user data
as well.
• Since HTTP protocols are mostly defunct now, most modern browsers display a message
warning the user from proceeding further because the website is insecure.
• Not just that, some browsers out rightly block the user from accessing the site.
• Another benefit you get from upgrading to HTTPS is higher ranking on Google’s search page
since Google considers HTTPS as a ranking factor.
Secure Your Servers and Admin Panels

• Most ecommerce platforms come with default passwords that are very easy to
guess.
• And if you don’t change them, you are exposing yourself to preventable hacks.
• Use complex password(s) and usernames and change them frequently.
Payment Gateway Security
• It is common that most of us save our credit card numbers on our database.
• It saves time , but is an added liability too.
• It is easy for us to fall victim to a security breach, and hackers get their hands on
credit card data.
• To ensure security,  you should never store credit card information on your
servers and ensure your payment gateways security is not at risk.
• Additionally, you can use third-party payment processing systems to carry out the
process off-site. Popular options include  PayPal, Stripe, Skrill, and Wordplay.
• When it comes to ecommerce recommendations, you must obtain a Payment
Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) accreditation.
Antivirus and Anti-Malware Software
•  An antivirus or an anti-fraud software can help you with this serious ecommerce
issue.
• They use sophisticated algorithms to flag any malicious transactions to help you
can take further action.
• They provide a fraud risk score which can help proprietors determine if a certain
transaction is legitimate.
Use Firewalls
• Use firewall software and plugins that are pocket-friendly yet effective.
• They keep untrusted networks at bay and regulate traffic that enters and leaves
your site.
• It offers selective permeability and only allows trusted traffic in.
• They also protect against cyber threats such as SQL injections and cross-site
scripting.
 Secure your website with SSL certificates
• Secure sockets layer (SSL) certificates
• are files that link a key to transactions on different paths on a network.
• These certificates are associated with credit card details and transactions to regular
queries.
• SSL certificates encrypt data to protect it from interception in between different
destinations. The information you send from your end to the server is secure.
• If you want to conduct any type of business on your site, you require SSL certificates, so
that every process that takes place on your site is secure.
 Backup Your Data
• If you don’t backup your data regularly, you are at the risk of losing it.
• Employ automatic backup service so that even if you forget to do it manually, all your data will be
backed up automatically.
• Another option is to choose a managed ecommerce web hosting service that automatically
creates backups for you, like Cloudways.
Stay Updated
• The importance of regularly updating WordPress core, security tools, and plugins can
be stressful
• But, install security updates and patches as soon as they release because hackers can
use bots that identify which websites use outdated software.
• That makes outdated software a serious liability.
Opt for a Solid Ecommerce Platform

• It is important that you choose a secure ecommerce platform that regularly

updates itself and offers top-notch security.
• Ecommerce platform tools safeguard you against common threats and
frequently provide you with updates.
• PrestaShop, Magento and WooCommerce are some popular choices.
Train Your Staff Better
• Your staff should be aware of laws and policies pertaining to the protection of
user information.
• They should not share login credentials, and you should review the personnel
who have access to sensitive customer information.
• Once your employee tenders their resignation, remove their details and revoke
all their access to keep them from committing a cyber crime against your
business.
Keep an Eye out for Malicious Activity

• If you don’t want any malicious attack to get you, you should keep your eyes
open for any suspicious activity.
• This can save you a lot of trouble – not to mention revenue – since you can
potentially catch a fraudulent transaction before it can take place.
• You can utilize special monitoring software that tracks the activity in real time
and notifies you of any questionable transaction.
 Educate Your Clients
• Some lapses in security don’t happen at your end but your client’s.
• They might be using weak passwords or they might deliver sensitive information on phishing
sites and in the hands of hackers.
• You can solve these ecommerce security threats by educating your customers.
• Educate them about the risks associated with unsafe security practices.
• You can demand strong passwords and introduce them to how phishing works.
• Strong passwords require a good combination of characters, symbols, and numbers that are
near-impossible to brute-force or guess.
• You can also keep users away from creating profiles with weak passwords.
• Or you can bypass this whole process and simply let them sign up via Facebook or Google which
offer world-class cyber security.
Most commonly used passwords
 Conclusion
• It is a smart approach to be aware of the threats that are present in your immediate
environment online.
• You should also be aware of how you can protect yourself from these ecommerce
threats and prepare for them.
• As we’ve seen, earlier there’s no room for mistakes.
• One critical failure will cost you your business big losses.
• Therefore, the best approach is to invest in ecommerce security as much as you invest
in its marketing or web design.