With the increase in online shopping among people, cyber crimes or thefts have also increased. Having an online eCommerce store, you will need a strong and risk-free payment method for your clients. Experts have figured that high online payment sales also result in high online fraud. And to solve that error and gain the trust of customers, you should take the necessary steps.
The main reason behind the frauds is the lack of security for data storage and not using proper encryption processes during transmission. You will need to hire an eCommerce developer to help you build a robust and risk-free payment method for your online store. Here in this article, we will be learning how to develop a safe and sound payment method for eCommerce websites.
Tips on making your online payment method secure as a merchant
There are many ways you can make online payment safer for customers. Apart from that, you can also teach them how to do online payments safely, and mention the benefits of online payment. This way you will gain the customers’ trust and loyalty. Now, let’s make your eCommerce website’s online payment method risk-free.
1. Use secured online payments
Rather than going for any random third-party payment method, go for the secured online payment methods used in eCommerce today. Banks have been providing cards and other services to help consumers pay securely. Apart from that, well-known and trustable eWallets are also there like GooglePay, ApplePay, etc. These are the payment options you should keep as a mode of payment:
- Credit card
- Debit card
- eWallet
- Direct debit
- Wire Transfer
2. Make your customers feel safe on your website/app
It is very essential for your customers to feel safe when they are browsing your website. It makes them take a step forward and buy the product. How do customers feel safe? Use SSL/TLS certificate, it will automatically add a padlock icon in front of your website’s URL. Along with that feature the secured payment method icons that customers know of and can trust like Mastercard, PayPal, Visa, GPay, etc.
3. Try payment services offered by eCommerce platforms
Many eCommerce platforms have their own payment gateway and provide payment processing services. This makes eCommerce payment safe and risk-free. You might be thinking, “But they would be charging higher fees.” No, the rates are nominal just like others, so you don’t have to worry about it as well. Ensure your eCommerce development company integrates the payment processing solution with your site.
4. Secure information of customers’ credit card
Being a merchant, it is your moral duty to protect your customers’ data, especially credit card number and pin. How would you do that? While finalizing your payment processing partner look at the following features:
- Tokenization: It is the process of converting your customer’s credit card information into a string of random numbers.
- 3DS Authentication: It adds an extra process, where a verification code is sent via SMS or email. The payment process will move ahead after you put in the code.
- AVS (Address Verification System): This system verifies the billing address entered by the customer with the bank’s records, preventing unauthorized card usage.
- Credit Card Security Codes: Commonly known as CVC {Card Verification Code} or CVV. the customer has to manually add the CVV every time he/she wants to make a payment.
5. Comply with online security regulations
The most needed step for online stores when accepting online payments is to comply with the online security regulations for the security. Which are the online payment regulations that make it secure?
- Payment Card Security Standards (PCI DSS)
- Data protection regulations (GDPR)
- The Payment Service Directive 2 (PSD2)
All these regulations are governed by a set of rules that help you keep the customer data and the transaction/transmission risk-free. When going for payment processing services, make sure they comply with these rules. Compliance with these regulations is your responsibility when you go self-hosted.
6. Keep the customers in a loop or informed
No matter what, keep the customers in a loop or informed, it won’t only make things easier, but will also build trust between you and your customer. You might have noticed how the bank quickly sends the message as soon as there’s a debit/credit transaction in your account.
Make sure you are sending out messages via SMS and in-app notification on payment processing, order acceptance, shipping, and delivery. The process doesn’t stop here, ask for an after-sale review and stay connected with them. You are being transparent with your customer, which will decrease the chances of fraud.
7. Flag suspicious activities
The most important thing to do is to flag all suspicious activities and take action against them. But, how do you identify suspicious activity? Are you getting plenty of orders from a single IP address? Do you see the trend of refunds or chargebacks? Have you received an unusually large order? Do you see any fraud attempts or shady activity? All of the mentioned are red flags and you can count them as suspicious activities.
Do the cross-check, and take all the necessary steps to be compliant with the rules and regulations. As for a bundle of orders from the same IP, you can check and block the IP address. When you receive an unusually large order, verify the order with the buyer, ask them for a different payment mode and then move ahead. If you feel there’s something wrong, you can always cancel the order.
Make your eCommerce website’s payment method secure!
Whether you are a small business owner or running a multinational online store, online payment security is a must for both. At first, it might overwhelm you. However, as discussed many mechanisms will allow you to set up a risk-free online payment method.
If not anything, you can always rely on traditional gateways, platform payment services, or all-in-one payment processors. Ask your eCommerce development company to integrate the reliable and secure payment method gateway to your website. To ensure both your and your customer’s safety, the online payment security system is constantly in the process of improving security.