Modern businesses that operate online rely on customer information in order to develop personalized offers and design well-tailored messages. In addition, businesses handle customers’ personal data including credit and debit card information. This kind of sensitive information needs to be handled safely and securely in order to prevent data theft and fraud. Online businesses take protecting customers’ personal information very seriously, because loyal customers are essential for their business success.
If the data gets stolen or misused, a business will lose customers and their reputation will be ruined, sometimes beyond repair. That’s why it’s of the utmost importance to build trust with customers by having a fraud-proof business. That way, customers will more easily disclose their sensitive information and make online purchases, without worrying that their information will fall into the wrong hands. Here’s why having a fraud-proof business in 2018 is so important.
It’s a top concern for your customers
During the last 5 years, 46% of Americans were victims of the credit card fraud. Moreover, card frauds have cost consumers worldwide $24.71 billion in 2016 alone, which is 12% higher than in 2015. That being said, online consumers have concerns when doing business and disclosing their credit card information to eCommerce business. To online businesses, customer trust is of vital importance. Ensuring security and protecting customers’ personal information is one of the most important factors in ensuring customer loyalty and retention.
Hackers target personal information of the consumers in order to exploit it or sell it on the black market. However, around 60% of cyber attacks are successful because of a data leak from within a business organization itself. Therefore, if you want to fraud-proof your business you must look in-house first and ensure employees don’t have access to data that doesn’t concern them. Also, implementing physical security and monitoring, alongside cybersecurity is a good way to prevent data from leaving your office computers.
It’s important for your business success
As mentioned before, a simple security breach can, in many ways, destroy an online business. This is especially true for eCommerce businesses that store personal information about a great number of customers. Once data starts to leak, your customers will leave and find another, more secure company to do business with. Moreover, your business reputation will be in ruins because people won’t hesitate to spread the news over social media about what’s happened to them and they’ll surely blame you for it.
After that, it may take years before you gain new customers and by that time you might go bankrupt. A good way to prevent this issue is to implement PCI DSS compliance standard to greatly reduce the risks of fraud. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) was developed by Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council to help improve control of cardholder data and reduce chances of fraud. Once you’ve set up this security standard, you’ll have to maintain it regularly.
Meeting customer expectations
As technology progresses and sets new trends, the customer needs and expectations change as well. Each year the online market significantly grows and it’s already quite overcrowded – meaning that 2018 will be no different. The fact of the matter is that online businesses must ensure a seamless customer service, in order to remain competitive on the market, as well as relevant to their customers. Customers that decide to do business on your website have a certain amount of confidence in your business and they expect you’ll safeguard their personal information. That confidence is very fragile, and if you don’t meet customer expectations, you might lose them for good.
To ensure that your customers’ needs are taken care of, make sure you have proper security measures in place on your eCommerce platform, such as anti-virus and anti-malware software. Also, you need to ensure that the checkout pages have HTTPS protocol for additional security. Furthermore, once you’ve set up security measures, you must constantly monitor your security status for any vulnerabilities and weaknesses. Always update your software and ensure personal information is safe from harm. In addition, ask customers to create strong passwords when they log in to your website and use credit card security codes to ensure they’re in physical possession of the card.
Security is one of the top concerns for both online consumers and businesses. Considering the fact that cyber attacks are getting more sophisticated and more common, security in 2018 may even become the top concern for everyone. Having a fraud-proof business ensures customer loyalty, as well as the fact that customers will find something of value on your website. If you manage to secure your customers’ personal information, you’ll be able to successfully grow your business.
