How To Ensure Online Payments Security: Merchants Should Note

By Author: Sifipay
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Our blogs have recently been discussing security. And it's no surprise: it's an important part of financial institutions' and merchants' success. Let's take a look at what merchants can do to ensure the security of online payments through online payment gateway they receive.

Payments security is a set of rules, regulations, and recommendations that merchants should follow or consider if they want to protect their profits and their customers' information. Some security features are determined by the merchant, while others are determined by the financial institution, and we will go over the basics for both.

Secure card payments: merchant’s website safety
Your first step in ensuring the security of e-payments is to update your website. Begin with the most basic information: create a detailed product/service description, payment methods, shipping, and return policy. Uncertainty about these can lead to client confusion and subsequent chargebacks, which you don't want to happen.

The SSL technology
When it comes to sensitive data protection, every merchant should look into the Secure Sockets Layer ...
... (SSL) protocol. When a person visits a website that uses the protocol, their data is encrypted; as a result, your client's financial and personal information is transmitted securely, preventing fraudsters from stealing it.

The best part is that the transition is seamless and immediate: a website that uses the SSL protocol will open and function normally. It's also simple to see if a website uses SSL technology by looking at the URL tab. You're good to go if it starts with HTTPS instead of HTTP and/or has a padlock.

The SSL protocol is also required by PCI DSS, which we will go over in more detail later. Finally, some browsers, such as Chrome, Safari, and others, will warn you if the website you're about to visit does not support the protocol. The message "website not secure" appears, which can deter potential customers from purchasing from you – yet another reason to install the protocol.

3D secure
This is yet another exciting payment protection technology of any best online payment gateway, but this time it is used during the purchasing process. 3DS is a security protocol that allows you to confirm your customer's identity in order to avoid fraudulent transactions.

When you enable 3D secure technology on your website, a customer enters their card information as usual after adding an item to their cart. The 3DS part comes next: a person must verify their identity by entering a permanent password for a 3D-secure service, a one-time password (OTP) they will receive on the phone, or using biometrics authentication with the phone. If someone steals someone's card information, they will be unable to complete the verification process without the card owner's phone number.

If you're a merchant in the European Union, you'll need a 3DS protocol to comply with the Revised Payment Services Directive's Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) requirement (PSD2). Before completing a purchase, the SCA requires a client to go through a two-factor authentication procedure, and as we've seen, 3DS is ideal for the double verification.

PCI DSS compliance
A Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a set of rules that all parties involved in the processing, storage, and transfer of credit card information, including merchants and banks, must follow. These are regulations established by Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express to ensure that the entire process of handling online purchases is secure.

Essentially, you must comply with PCI DSS for your own good – to avoid data breaches and maintain client trust.

For merchants, there are four levels of PCS DSS compliance, which are determined by the volume of card transactions. Typically, your bank or PSP can determine which PCI DSS level you should adhere to.

Merchants must also comply with 12 general data security requirements:
To protect cardholder data, set up and maintain a firewall configuration.
For system passwords and other security parameters, do not use vendor-supplied defaults.
Safeguard stored cardholder information.
Encrypt cardholder data transmission over open, public networks.
Protect all systems from malware and keep anti-virus software or programmes up to date.
Develop and maintain secure applications and systems.
Access to cardholder data should be limited to those with a business need to know.
Access to system components must be identified and authenticated.
Limit physical access to cardholder information.
All access to network resources and cardholder data should be tracked and monitored.
Test security systems and processes on a regular basis.
Maintain an information security policy that applies to all employees.

SifiPay is fully PCI DSS level 1 v 3.2 compliant and undergoes annual certification to maintain data security standards. Level 1 compliance allows for the processing of more than 6 million card transactions per year.

Know more about SifiPay, please visit www.sifipay.com.