Your e-commerce accounting data allows you to make informed decisions, plan for the future, and determine whether your business is profitable. The problem is that cybercriminals are aware of this and work around the clock to access that data.
As such, you must establish measures to secure this information—which includes financial statements, financial reports, and balance sheets—from them to protect your customers’ data and business reputation.
In this blog, we will offer tips to achieve that. But not before we discuss the importance of safeguarding your business’ financial information and the common threats to this data.
The importance of securing your e-commerce accounting data
According to Statista, losses incurred by e-commerce due to payment fraud were projected to be $41 billion in 2022. The report further predicted that figure to rise to $48 billion in 2023.
Losing that much money is never a good thing for any sector, but this is among the potential risks of cybercriminals accessing your accounting data.
However, financial loss is just the beginning. Customers will lose trust in your business when they discover such a breach. It can also lead to legal issues and a damaged reputation—many enterprises never recover from that. Surely, this is enough reason for any e-commerce venture to take the protection of their accounting information seriously, right?
Now that we have gotten that out of the way, let’s look at the threat landscape.
Common threats to e-commerce accounting data
Cybercriminals are constantly evolving their method of attacks. However, the most common cyber threats to e-commerce financial data are the ones listed below.
Phishing Attacks
Phishing attacks have evolved from the generic “You’ve won a million dollars” email. Today, they have become more targeted and deceptive. A good example is spear phishing, where cyber actors make highly personalized attempts to steal information.
For instance, you may receive an email that appears to be from a trusted vendor. However, engaging with that email can compromise your e-commerce accounting data.
Malware
These are malicious programs, such as spyware, ransomware, viruses, and trojan horses. Hackers install them on your computers and spread them to your administrators and customers, and can then swipe accounting data on your systems.
E-skimming
In e-skimming, malicious actors steal sensitive payment information, such as credit card numbers and other financial transaction details, from online shoppers. To do this, they inject malicious code into e-commerce websites or point-of-sale (POS) systems to steal credit card information while customers make purchases.
Most e-commerce websites store databases of customer information, such as names, physical addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and so on. Through an SQL attack, unauthorized persons could gain access to these databases.
Hackers achieve this by using malicious code to bypass an authentication page and gain access to the whole back-end and databases. Then, they can steal, modify, and delete the data.
Cross-site scripting
In this attack, a hacker inserts malicious code into a legitimate website. Once a user visits this website, this code will attack them. This attack can result in keystroke logging, client impersonation, identity theft, and unauthorized file/webcam/microphone access.
Insider threat
Sometimes, the threats are within. Current and ex-employees can intentionally or unintentionally jeopardize data, which emphasizes the need for physical access control.
7 tips to secure your e-commerce accounting data
Cybercriminals will continue devising new attacks, but it is up to you to find ways to prevent them from accessing your financial data. Below are some practical ways to do that.
1. Use encryption
One way to safeguard your e-commerce accounting data is to keep it from prying eyes through encryption. Encryption transforms data from readable, plain text format into an unreadable encoded format—a cipher. Only users and processes with the decryption key can read and access this data.
Start by deploying a secure socket layer (SSL) to encrypt data transmitted between your website and customers’ data. Encrypt active data, such as network traffic and database queries, and data at rest, such as documents and stored files. Several e-commerce vendors handle this part, so choose one that has the appropriate security measures.
Also, have an effective system in place to categorize your data while at rest. This helps you determine the risk profile of different data points, which may require substantial protection.
Your communication channels shouldn’t be left out, either. Use VoIP for small business owners that offers end-to-end encryption for all calls. The same also goes for your messaging platforms and email systems.
2. Limit access to sensitive data
Access control is a vital element of data security in accounting. Not all employees should have access to all financial data and systems. For instance, a data analyst shouldn’t have access to customer payment information.
A role-based access control (RBAC) system is an effective way to achieve this. It groups users into roles, each with predefined permissions and limitations. This approach optimizes data by assigning permissions based on job roles. It allows individuals to access only information necessary to do their jobs.
RBAC can be customized to roles like Accountant, Customer Service Representative, and Product Manager. For instance, an accountant might have access to financial records and transaction data, while the customer service rep can only view basic customer information and order details.
Aligning access with job roles allows you to mitigate the risks of unauthorized data exposure and enhance data security.
Furthermore, you need to manage access revocation. When employees leave the company or change roles, promptly update or revoke their permissions. Regular review and access privilege updates enable you to maintain data security and prevent potential insider threats.
3. Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA)
Authentication stands as the first line of defense against unauthorized access. Employing multi-factor authentication reinforces security by requiring users to provide two or more verification forms before accessing a resource.
This can be a combination of something they know (like a password), something they have (like a smartphone), and something they are (like a fingerprint).
MFA significantly reduces the chances of unauthorized access, as it is unlikely that a trespasser would possess all the required authentication factors at any given time.
4. Keep software up-to-date
A software vulnerability is another common avenue hackers use to gain unauthorized access to systems. The systems you use daily, like your accounting tool and customer relationship management (CRM), can be exploited.
To prevent this, adopt a cybersecurity strategy that includes regular software updates and patch management. This practice is a basic yet powerful defense against such security threats and ensures the safety of sensitive financial information.
Software vendors release updates and patches regularly. So, apply these updates promptly to address newly discovered vulnerabilities and strengthen your overall security posture.
5. Conduct regular security audits
It is always better to be proactive when it comes to cybersecurity. That way, you can detect vulnerabilities before malicious actors can exploit them. This is why conducting routine system audits and monitoring is crucial.
These regular risk assessments provide a holistic view of your data security landscape, allowing you to defend against emerging threats. Besides, periodic audits can help you comply with regulatory requirements and industry standards. This is especially necessary for e-commerce businesses that handle sensitive financial information.
6. Educate employees
Your workforce plays a crucial role in your efforts to secure your e-commerce accounting data. Several reports, including Verizon’s 2023 Data Breach Investigation Report (DBR), found that human error accounts for most data breaches. Hence, employee security training is essential.
Educate team members on data security best practices, such as identifying phishing schemes, creating strong passwords, and handling sensitive information responsibly.
If you rely on contact center software integration to streamline customer service and accounting processes, you should train employees to recognize potential security risks within these systems, such as phishing attempts or unauthorized access.
Besides training, enforcing a culture of data security within your enterprise is equally important. Employees should understand how crucial their contribution is to protecting sensitive financial information. In this culture, everyone, regardless of their position, is committed to maintaining data integrity and confidentiality.
7. Have an incidence response plan
While an incident response plan is not a prevention tip, it can help you mitigate the effect of an attack. It is also one of the best business decisions you can make to remain competitive.
You can do many things right, but a breach can still occur because someone clicked on a malicious link or forgot to update their password. In such a situation, you need a de-escalation plan to quickly contain the threat, minimize damage, and restore normal operations.
This is what an incident response plan is for. It outlines the basic action steps to take after a potentially harmful event. It describes who is responsible for what, how to communicate with stakeholders, and how to recover and learn from the incident. The goal is to create a roadmap that lets your team take action as quickly as possible and minimize the impact of the event.
Final thoughts
Your e-commerce accounting data contains vital information like sales transactions, inventory levels, customer payment details, and financial projections. Therefore, it isn’t surprising that cybercriminals want to access it.
However, you must find ways to safeguard this information. Failure to do so can affect your business’s financial health and cause legal and reputational damage. So, implement the above tips to secure your business accounting data.
Most importantly, always keep up with the latest trends in cybersecurity. Cybercrime doesn’t rest, and neither should you.
