As the year 2017 comes to an end, business professionals, technologists and service providers face a plethora of new challenges; where technological advancements are improving e-commerce, fraudsters have also finding new and improved ways to break the digital locks. With each new technological breakthrough comes a digital threat that forces us to take extreme security measures. E-commerce security has always been a heated subject, mainly because it faces new challenges every day. In this article, we discuss some of the frauds occurred with e-commerce businesses and their remedy to help you prepare for your e-commerce site’s security in the coming year.

The damages of online fraud and why you need to take it seriously

Your customers pay for your products and services through your e-Commerce store that is usually guarded by a payment gateway. If you are using a proper payment gateway with enhanced security features then you need not to worry much about the fraudulent activities that may occur on your e-commerce website. However, nothing is 100% secure; you always have to take security measures to make sure that your online systems are not compromised in any way.

In case your systems become a victim of a fraudulent activity, there is a higher risk that you will not only lose your customers, but will also lose their trust and faith that guarantees business longevity.

The common e-commerce frauds

The research shows that most common e-commerce frauds happen during a credit or debit card transaction. The fraudsters are able to store customer information, which they later use to conduct illegal transactions. Most common types of frauds are categorized as identity theft, merchant fraud, affiliate fraud and international fraud. Most fraudulent activities stem from identity theft that results in loss of confidential information that is utilized to conduct fraudulent activities.

How to Combat Fraud on your e-commerce site?

Your online marketing strategy should entail a through plan regarding website security. There are a lot of ways to prevent fraud; you need to consider all the security measures to improve your e-commerce site security. Peruse effective tips to eliminate the possibility of credit card frauds.

Understand how fraud occurs through online e-commerce stores. The following image shows the visualization of fraud networks. Notice how frauds occur systematically.

Ways to prevent Ecommerce fraud in 2017:

• Utilize AVS, address verification service, to perform all transactions on your website.
• Analyze online orders before processing them.
• Ask your customers to use up-to-date online identity protection software.
• Create customer awareness brochures and banners, and help customers understand fraudulent activities and how to prevent them.
• Be extra cautious about the orders you receive from foreign regions.
• Use up-to-date fraud prevention applications and software to keep your systems protected.
• Keep a detailed record of all transactions that occurred through your website.

Making your e-commerce website secure from fraudulent activities must be your number one priority. Without the proper security, you can lose your customers’ long-lasting loyalty that drives value for your business. Employ the necessary security means today to protect your website in 2017 for an unhindered business growth.