When online shoppers purchase something from your online store they have high expectations that you will keep their credit card information secure. If not, they would not be regular customers. This makes ensuring that your customers’ payment data is kept secure a non-negotiable if you don’t want to break their trust.
For new startup owners that may feel like a huge responsibility and overwhelming, but it may be kept quite simple by following these four security tips when selecting a payment processing gateway. We worked on this list with industry experts at PayU, a leading eCommerce payment gateway.
1. Don’t keep customers’ confidential payment data
There are stringent requirements regarding the customer data that you collect, such as not storing Card Verification Value (CVV) data. This is due to the fact that it was discovered that about 95% of credit card breaches come from small businesses. The best way to avoid a data breach is simply to discard all payment details once a transaction has been carried out.
If you need to keep information such as a customer’s name and account number on record then ensure that you protect this data – you can use a private network or cloud-based storage, or encrypt the information so that hackers can’t read it.
2. Select a secure eCommerce payments provider
Despite the regulations that have been put in place, not all eCommerce payments service providers have the same security measures in place. When searching for an eCommerce platform or processor, select trusted and reputable service providers that have positive reviews. Do extensive research on companies before you partner with them and try to find an eCommerce payments provider that is transparent about their security measures.
3. Validate every single transaction
While you may be receiving payment card transactions in a card not present (CNP) environment, there are still ways to validate whether each transaction is being carried out by the rightful card owner. One of the ways you can do this is by monitoring customer purchase patterns and identifying anything out of the norm. For example, if you detect any abnormal orders coming from a regular customer, it’s good practice to call the customer to verify the order.
4. Educate yourself and your staff
Employee error was found to be the leading cause of data breaches. Even if you have top-notch security systems in place, you’re still putting your customers’ confidential details at risk if you and your staff aren’t up-to-date on proper security strategies and techniques.
It’s absolutely critical that your startup follows proper security standards when accepting online payments, as one of the most effective ways to increase conversions for your eCommerce startup is to foster trust from your customers.
