At a time when e-commerce has reached unprecedented levels, it’s no surprise consumers have wised-up to the issue of payment security. Indeed, most are now aware of the risks associated with retailers who don’t offer adequate protection when handing over those crucial credit card details.
But, it’s 2018, and website security is about so much more than offering peace of mind around online payment methods. Today, as more personal information is being gathered by companies than ever before, customer data, generally, is becoming an increasingly valuable commodity and an attractive target for cybercriminals.
So, now is the time to get your website security in check. As we move into the future, customers will likely be more interested in businesses and brands that make clear they offer more website protections.
Here are some tips to help better protect your website and build trust with your customers.
Get an SSL certificate
As of July this year, Google started marking all websites without an SSL Certificate as “Not Secure” – while sites that do have an SSL certificate are marked as “Secure’. Essentially, an SSL Certificate shows your website visitors that your website is using a secure HTTPS connection, which means sensitive user data is encrypted on its way from customers to servers. They are quick and easy to implement through most website hosting platform services.
Use multiple layers of authentication
When it comes to accessing online accounts, implementing more than one authentication process can be an important way to more thoroughly verify a customer’s identity. This is because it is less likely cyber criminals have access to the right combination of credentials to successfully gain unauthorised access to a user’s account.
A typical example of a multi-factor authentication process might include a strong password, something only the user knows, along with a unique pin number generated and sent to their mobile device.
Keep your customer data safe
According to GoDaddy research, three in ten small businesses who suffered a cyber breach reported they had to inform customers and clients. This can jeopardise customer relationships and their trust in your small business. If your business is storing customer data, consider employing monitoring and detection security services for your website, so that hackers can be deterred before it’s too late.
Implement employee training on data protection
Ensure all employees are aware of and understand your best practice guidelines for storing and accessing customer data. This could include anything from prohibiting the use of personal devices to access documents, providing guidelines around where and how computers and devices can be used outside the business, or even preventing sensitive documents from being printed or placed in general rubbish.
Keep your website and systems up-to-date with the latest anti-virus, malware and spyware with continuous monitoring
When there are hackers waiting to prey on the most vulnerable, don’t forget to ensure your website is always getting plenty of TLC. This means you may want to consider making sure your website is continually monitored by website security services who can check for the latest viruses, malware and spyware – to help keep you notified, work to fix the issues and help to keep your website and data better protected.
So, there you have it – five tips your business can implement today, that could help give your customers increased peace of mind when using your website in our increasingly data-driven environment.
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