How to minimize the risks

Online shopping has been booming – all the more so since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. According to a recent study by Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) one in two online shops posted more than 20 percent growth last year. Obviously, more and more businesses are keen to add online retailing to their repertoire or invest in their existing online offering. Unfortunately, this is also an area that attracts fraudsters and hackers eager to cash in. The following tips and measures will help you to make your online shop more secure.

Clear payment terms and monitoring

• Define payment deadlines and stipulate them in your general terms and conditions.
• Use established payment channels such as banks and credit card companies.
• Monitor your outstanding payments regularly.

Latest technology and data protection

• Keep your web application up to date.
• Use encryption to make sure customers’ personal details remain secure during transactions on your website.
• Install a web application firewall.
• Have your website security checked regularly by an expert.
• Make backups of your website and any databases on a regular basis.
• Hackers often try to gain access to customer or credit card details. The EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation lays down strict regulations that shop owners need to be aware of.

Binding processes

• Install processes to check whether orders above a certain value are genuine. This can be done, for example, by checking the delivery address given (does it match the buyer’s?) and the buyer’s identity.
• An order should also be checked to ensure it’s genuine if the same IP address places several small orders simultaneously.
• Ask for downpayments in certain situations.

Don’t forget shipping

Finally, when considering prevention measures we should not forget the shipping process, which is beyond the control of either the sender or the recipient. Transport insurance can cover any damage or loss occurring while the goods are in transit. You can read about who is liable in which case when sending parcels in our blog post on this topic.