Ecommerce Website Design in Johannesburg
As we live in a digital world, ecommerce website design in Johannesburg has become a popular medium to search information, business, trading and so on. Various organizations and companies are also employing the services of ecommerce design agency in order to introduce their products or services around the world. Therefore, E-commerce or electronic commerce is formed. E-commerce is any type of business or commercial transaction that involves the transfer of information across the internet. In this situation a huge amount of information is generated and stored in the web hosting. Besides, the security issues are the most precious problems in every electronic commercial process. This massive increase in the uptake of e-commerce has led to a new generation of associated security threats.
Security Threats to Ecommerce:
The cyber threats seek to compromise availability of the ecommerce, integrity and confidentiality of the data.
Ransomware
A cybercriminal encrypts a victim’s data and demands a ransom to decrypt it.
Insider threats
A threat can come from a disgruntled employee, a compromised account, or a well-intentioned staff member who accidentally exposes the organization’s system or website.
Malware
A type of software or unwanted programming that installs itself on a system and causes it to behave abnormally.
Social engineering
A dangerous hacking technique that relies on human error instead of technical vulnerabilities
DDoS
A distributed denial-of-service attack that drains a ecommerce‘s resources, making it unable to respond to legitimate service requests.
MITM
A man-in-the-middle attack that allows a threat actor to eavesdrop on data flowing between two parties
Supply chain attacks
A supply chain attack is a cyberattack that compromises an organization’s products, services, or operations by targeting a less secure part of its supply chain. Supply chain attacks can be difficult to mitigate because they can target any part of the supply chain, including vendors and the vendors they supply. It can come from the suppliers’ website or system.
Artificial intelligence
Cybercriminals use AI to create narratives that mimic legitimate communications, and to generate ransomware tools and attack vectors.
Phishing
It is when cybercriminals target victims with emails that appear to be from a legitimate company asking for sensitive information.
Exploits and exploit kits. An exploit is a piece of malicious code that can compromise a security vulnerability.
Trojan horse is an attack uses a malicious program that is hidden inside a seemingly legitimate one. When the user executes the presumably innocent program, the malware inside the Trojan can be used to open a backdoor into the system through which hackers can penetrate the computer or network. This threat gets its name from the story of the Greek soldiers who hid inside a horse to infiltrate the city of Troy and win the war. Once the “gift” was accepted and brought within the gates of Troy, the Greek soldiers jumped out and attacked. In a similar way, an unsuspecting user may welcome an innocent-looking application or website into their system only to usher in a hidden threat.
To prevent Trojan attacks, users should be instructed not to download or install anything unless its source can be verified. Also, NGFWs can be used to examine data packets for potential threats of Trojans.
And many more..
Mitigation of the Threats:
The following questions should lead our mitigation strategy:
- How to keep sensitive information safe gathered from the ecommerce?
- What counteractive measures should one adopt?
- What common mistakes must one steer clear of?
Choice of Ecommerce Website Design Platform in Johannesburg
Selecting the more secured ecommerce platform can eliminate many risk factors. It not boasts the level of security and functionality that recent versions offer. The first step to guarding your online store begins with choosing a reliable E-Commerce platform. An E-Commerce platform is what a foundation is to a building. The stronger the foundation, sturdier the building will be. There are a number of secure and reliable E-Commerce platforms in the market like Magneto, Shoplift , BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Prestashop, etc. to pick from. Be informed that each platform has its own native features and extensions which can make a sea change to the way you transact your online business. While making a final choice, check for scalable security provisions. Preferably, third party security extensions should also be easily integrable with the platform. Also, make it a point not to pick a platform that runs on expired or near-expiry versions. For instance, Magento has several versions starting from 1.x to 2.x. The older versions might not be safe. Old plugins and themes also contributes to risk factors. So, it is very important to keep all the softwares up to date.
CHOICE OF HOSTING PROVIDER
Having a great hosting provider, can eliminate much threats. Choose a hosting provider who is very knowledgeable in cybersecurity. These are the factors to consider when choosing a hosting company.
- AES encryption
- Scheduled/Regular backup program
- Network monitoring
- Round the clock technical assistance
- Immediate disaster recovery
- 99.9% Uptime
SSL installation to Ecommerce
Search engines rank highly websites that are secured. Having SSL installed on your ecommerce, protects your users and give your business credibility to its users. Apart from the boost that Google will give to your page, you can also make your customers trust your store with an SSL certificate. An SSL certificate can make your website look trustworthy in the eyes of customers. It works by adding a green HTTPS prefix to the URL and a green padlock symbol on the address bar. The primary benefit of SSI certificate (some refer to it as TLS) is that it encrypts transmission of data between points, i.e. the web server and the browser. Websites with HTTPS encryption enjoy higher conversions than without HTTPS encryption
Reliable Payment Gateway
Transactions happen through payment gateways. These are the third-party institutions that keep the users’ information. As an ecommerce or website owner, you should not have access to clients’ sensitive information like credit card’s details. Payment Gateways should be secured for all parties as financial information is very sensitive. There are other benefits that these payment gateways offer like: Fast Transactions, Global Reach, Recurring Billing, Easy Integration, Enhanced Customer Experience, Transparent Fees, etc.
Strong Perimeter Defences
Most of the hackers get into your websites by exploiting weak or broken links in your website. Things like fire wall, VPN, etc. go a long in preventing that. Compare such security measures to a home’s perimeter defense. When the perimeter defense is equipped with a card wire, there is no possibility of infiltration. Similarly, your entry points when guarded with a firewall, ensures that only authorized users are allowed entry. Alternatively, you can also set up a user password system where the user must use a minimum strength password. Without setting up such a minimum strength password, the user must not be allowed to log into the store. Back end weak passwords are an easy way of hacking your ecommerce.
Multi-Layer Authentication
Multi-layer authentication, also known as multi-factor authentication (MFA), is a security process that requires multiple credentials to verify a user’s identity on the ecommerce or website. MFA can help protect a user’s online purchases, bank accounts, business, and identity from hackers.
Here are some examples of MFA:
- Biometric authentication: Uses unique biological traits, such as fingerprints, facial recognition, iris scans, or voice recognition.
- Email token authentication: Sends a unique code or “token” via email for account authentication.
- SMS verification codes: Sends a verification code to a user’s phone.
- Time-based one-time passwords (TOTP): Uses a one-time password that expires after a set amount of time.
- Mobile app push notifications: Sends a notification to a user’s mobile app.
- Location-based authentication: Uses a user’s location to verify their identity.
- Behavioral biometrics: Uses how a user interacts with a device, such as typing patterns, mouse movements, and swipes.
- Heartbeat authentication: Uses electrical signals from a user’s heart to verify login credentials.
EMPLOYEE TRAINING AND AWARENESS
When it comes to organizational information security, employees seem to be lethargic in practicing password hygiene and safety. We all have that peer in our office, who keeps the username and password in broad daylight to be seen by all. Nothing could be more dangerous than this. This login credentials in wrong hands can spell doom to the entire organization. It is never too late to make your employees aware of the pitfalls in sharing passwords, login credentials, use of USB devices, unsecured networks, etc. Even if they are shared, they must be immediately replaced with a new password to sustain security. Some headers to make your employees practice password safety:
- Suggest them to use strong passwords containing a combination of alphabets, symbols and alphanumeric characters
- Set a password expiry period. Every password must be changed monthly or quarterly
- Deactivate employees’ accounts as soon as they leave the organization
To Sum Up:
Given the ongoing proliferation and development hackers, guarding your E-Commerce store and your customers from harm’s way is not easy. Each day the cyber crime rate is increasing by arithmetic proportions. So swift that nations are setting up separate agencies to monitor and curtail fraud and scams targeting E-Commerce. While they are doing their part to ensure online safety, you as an E-Commerce owner must also ensure that the E-Commerce store is geared up. Cybersecurity should be implemented diligently and users be trained to guard against threats. An effective cybersecurity strategy should ensure the availability of the e-commerce, confidentiality and integrity of data.