Today, many businesses are run from home and have shut down all of their physical locations. This is the case in many industries. Now, businesses run from their official websites or virtual offices.
From what we can tell, 2021 won’t be any different. Some people think that many more companies will move their business online. This could also be true for businesses that sell goods or services.
Having an online store may be one of the best things a business can do. But as technology, including the internet, gets better, it also gets worse in some ways.
This article will tell you what you need to know to protect and update your website so that it doesn’t go down.
e-Commerce Site Security Vulnerabilities
E-commerce sites are an excellent place for cyber criminals to hang out because so many businesses are moving online. A company that only does business online could face big problems because of these flaws.
Strengthening and improving your e-commerce site is a must if you want to be ready for these kinds of problems. Let’s look at some ways that e-Commerce sites can be hacked, so you know what to avoid.
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Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
This is a problem for sites where users fill out forms or use search bars a lot, which is most e-commerce sites today. The main reason is that user input is not cleaned up and filtered.
Any of the above, or even the back-end admin’s account, can be used to break into an e-commerce site. It’s a common mistake that even big companies like Google have to deal with. Hackers love to take advantage of these flaws to cause trouble and stop business on the site.
SQL Injection Attacks
These kinds of attacks also happen when user input isn’t cleaned up first. Cybercriminals are trying to get into your site’s database, which they may be able to do. With this, they can steal private information like financial data, etc.
Hackers sometimes sell large databases on the black market or delete or change some of the content on your website. It’s almost like they take ownership of your online store.
Once cybercriminals get their claws into an e-commerce site, they can do terrible things to it.
Malicious Bots
Bots have been very helpful for many online stores, but sometimes things can go wrong, and bad bots can hurt sales. Some reports say that some e-commerce sites get up to 21% of their traffic from bots that have been hacked.
A hacked bot can cause a lot of people to visit your site at once, which can be frustrating for your users and slow things down. They can also keep people from buying from the site by making a lot of items say “Out of stock.”
Malicious bots can also put malware on your site, which puts your users at risk.
Protecting and Improving Your e-Commerce Site for 2023
Knowing how important it is to keep cybercriminals from getting to your e-commerce site, you can’t do too much to protect and improve it. Here are five ways to make your e-commerce site safer and better:
Use HTTP + SSL
SSL, which stands for “Secure Sockets Layer,” is a security technology that helps browsers connect to the Internet through an encrypted link. The SSL link ensures that all information and communication between the browser and the web is safe and secure.
When an HTTP connection is paired with an SSL, it makes the connection more secure. HTTPS is the connection that e-commerce sites should use. It is safer.
Set up HTTPS on your platform to keep your site safe from online threats. Just get a verified and valid certificate from a good Certificate Authority and install it on your site.
This feature not only helps keep your site safe but also gives many customers peace of mind when they shop on your site. When they see HTTPS, they know it is safe.
Conduct Usability Testing
Usability testing is one way to know how people use your site and if its features and functions work as they should.
Usability testing is asking real people to try out your product (or website) by following instructions and tasks. Then you watch how they use the site or product and see if it works for what it was made for.
Usability testing is a surefire way to get honest feedback on the things you’ve made, like your website. The results might help you better understand your target audience’s wants and needs and how they relate to the product’s intended purpose.
A guide to usability testing can tell you everything you need to know about how to build an accurate usability test to improve your e-commerce website for 2023.
Make Your Website CCPA Compliant
This can be both a safety measure and a way to improve the websites for 2023.
As you build the database for your e-commerce site, you can collect and store some information about your users. Since your users have given you some sensitive information, using it in the right way keeps you in good standing with them.
There are laws in place that protect the information that website users find valuable. The California Consumer Privacy Act is one of these (CCPA). To follow this law, e-commerce sites must follow some rules very carefully.
Did you know, for example, that you must tell people on your site before collecting their personal information? The California data privacy law, among other important details, makes this clear.
Customers who know why you keep their information and what you use it for are more likely to buy from your site. Trust is one of the most important things that clients and businesses need to have in order for the business to do well.
Use Multi-Factor Authentication
A password alone isn’t enough anymore. Hackers and other cybercriminals will be less likely to get in if you use multi-factor authentication. Here’s how it works: as a site admin, you use two or more ways to log in to your account.
Anyone with access to your e-commerce site must turn on multi-factor authentication. This way, you can stop attacks that use a lot of force. It’s impossible for a hacker to steal or get important site information, like the login information for a site administrator.
Even if they get the login information, they can’t get into the back end of your site because of the multi-factor authentication. They don’t have your phone, so they can’t use the second way to sign in.
Use a Trusted SaaS Platform
Building your e-commerce site on a trusted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform like Shopify is smart and safe. These platforms pay professionals to keep their sites safe at all times. If you use their platform for your e-commerce site, you don’t have to worry as much about security.
You pay them to help you build your website and protect it from hackers. They can smell trouble and take care of it before it gets out of hand. Easy-peasy.
Conclusion
Even though this may seem like a lot of information for you and your team to take in, you can use a free report to help your team understand the changes. Makerto make sure that everyone is on the same page with the new plan. It may seem harder than ever to protect and improve your eCommerce site when you work from home, but this is the most important time to make these changes. By putting your plans into a well-designed report, you can ensure that everyone on your team is ready for the challenges and opportunities of 2023.
Now that more and more stores are moving their business online, it’s eat or be eaten. Other sites are ready to welcome your clients if your website isn’t doing well. If your site isn’t necessary, you’ll lose business and customers.
To avoid this, make a site people will trust and pay for. With the above tips, you can protect and improve your site so that shopping is easy in 2023.
