If you own a business, you may have an online store. If you have one, you may be concerned about its security. eCommerce security remains the top concern among enterprises. Because eCommerce websites rely on massive amounts of data. And make you concentrate more on your business goals while keeping your security concerns at bay.
However, if you want to know the tips to maintain security. Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Role of eCommerce security
WooCommerce store owner has tonnes of responsibility across the store. Because they decide on products, extract user data, and security. If you select WordPress, it is one of the leading eCommerce platforms.
Moreover, it offers extensive services to all online business owners. It also offers an eCommerce security strategy to protect Estores. But why are we concerned about security?
ECommerce stores gain the hype because of user preference. And you have to handle their:
- Confidential data
- Address information
- Payment details
So, why risk missing such an important point by remaining on the sidelines? You should check security when these websites are at high risk of being attacked.
Basics of eCommerce security for websites
As online sales increased during COVID-19, so did cybercrimes. So, some security threats to eCommerce sites arose to steal confidential data. Here are some key points to remember when it comes to increasing security.
Authentication
It guarantees authenticity between sellers and shoppers. Moreover, it adds up to guarantee safety and verification.
Integrity
It helps to maintain consistency and integrity in the information. So, that users feel assured when sharing information.
Privacy
Safety should be for users and website credential data from unauthorized access.
Communication
It refers to maintaining communication between sellers and buyers. So that buyers can’t trust reliable resources.
Availability
Increase your ranking and visibility by being available to your users. Moreover, it impacts your site traffic and SERPs. Try to make it more reliable by restricting unauthorized users.
Compliance
Just stick to the industrial regulations and standards for minimum security risks.
An overview of the WooCommerce store
If you plan to build eCommerce online store, then WooCommerce is the best. As WooCommerce is the best eCommerce platform. Mostly because of its vast features. WooCommerce store offers a plethora of plugins to boost your eCommerce store. How it suddenly gained all the popularity?
Mainly because it is:
- open-source
- extensive support
- compatible plugins
- user-friendly
But it also became popular due to extended support from WordPress. And this support from WordPress is making it lead the way. So why not count on some benefits offered by WordPress?
Is WordPress good for eCommerce websites?
Here are some best features of WordPress for your eStore.
Secured themes
Now when you develop a website, you also need themes. However, those themes must be secured. Firstly, you are investing significant money, and secondly, it establishes a reputation. Although, you should customize the theme to meet your business needs. Because your WordPress website security will highlight your company’s products and services.
And this would later persuade your visitors to associate with your brand. WordPress supports secure business environments. So, it ensures secured themes to meet all requirements.
SSL certificate
It can also refer to HTTPS, which ensures the eCommerce security of data transmission. And it promotes the use of encrypted data.
In this case, the administrator has to obtain certificates, followed by other steps. But WordPress for eCommerce websites streamlines the process for business owners to add SSL certificates.
Also, WordPress shows its eCommerce security nature this way. You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance.
Single vendor
WordPress provides various plugins for use in your eStore. The drag-and-drop option may win your approval.
One of the best types in this category is WooCommerce. Because a single seller can effectively run the entire store.
WooCommers also has a lot of commendable helpful plugins.
Regular updates
WordPress is not just to satisfy your eCommerce store. So security plays an important role. And it does have to be double-sided.
You see, there are thousands of developers and testers for WordPress. In case they find a glitch, a notification!
A new WordPress version, released! Along with that, as a responsible user, you should also be liable. Because business owners should also take some wise measures.
Payment gateway
If you have an eCommerce store, you will have payment gateways for purchases.
As it ensures streamlined payment through various methods. Such as a credit card, net banking, debit card, and other credentials.
Because it ensures the high security of the third-party plugin. Payments can pose serious security issues in eCommerce for owners.
Many stores don’t store any credential data. WordPress also allows you to integrate PCI compliance into your website.
Common eCommerce security threats
When you built a vast eCommerce store, it is the chance to get attacked. So, it is wisely said to check safety not just for you but also for your users.
Here’s a list of some common security threats faced by websites.
- Lack of trust –If we talk about potential threats, let’s talk about some general issues. Because more than tech-savvy attacks, you may face some general threats. So, here are some common WordPress website security risks faced by businesses:
- Phony websites– Developing counterfeit sites with the same name, how long will it take? And hackers do the same things. Guess what, without spending any money. They may copy your site and pose as you to your users. Moreover, it maligns your reputation and no users will come back to you.
- Malicious code– So, when we dig deeper into some technical attacks, it involves codes. Hackers inject malicious code into your site to change content, gain access, fraud, etc. Furthermore, they affect your reputation by diverting traffic to a competitor’s site.
- Data theft – eCommerce websites operate on data now and then. And hackers always have eyes on the price. They can steal your data from inventories, repositories, databases, etc. Mostly about personal information, credit card details, etc.
- Damages system– Hackers can sniff into any of the firm’s internal systems in no seconds. Maybe they use worms or viruses to attack your system.
- DOS attack– Hackers prevent users from using your store by slowing down the network or interfering with functions.
- Fraudulent access – Hackers want your data and will try anything to get it. As a result, they could achieve their objectives in any way.
Malware attack fraud
Malware can create havoc in finances, market shares, and reputation. Additionally, if it goes to the next level the clients can take it to may be criminal charges.
They can crawl your websites with viruses and worms. Moreover, it infects computers and networks in different ways. As they invade your private system and create disruptions.
So, if they could steal your data, that can infect multiple programs. Such as:
- Hijack systems
- Erase data
- Block access
- Malicious links
Brute force attacks
You must know this probability and combination trials. So here’s a quick recap. Brute force attacks refer to entering multiple entries. And that too with combinations.
Maybe they find a successful pairing for their 1000th time! You can call this method an eCommerce security trial-and-error attack. As hackers can enter your WordPress login page forcefully.
So you can count its benefits as its biggest loss. Because it offers numerous trials for login.
What else do hackers want? What if their combination didn’t work out as it seemed? Don’t assume you won. As these numerous trials can slow down your website speed.
Moreover, your hosting provider can temporarily suspend your account. So, that brute-force attack doesn’t create much havoc. And also it shouldn’t impact other websites on the server.
SQL injections
Moving on to another pointer, i.e, SQL injections. As you know, it is quite a heavily-used attack. Just like every website, WordPress also operates on the MYSQL database.
Now here’s a quite complex eCommerce security thing to handle. In a brute force attack, the hacker enters the site. But here, the hacker has access to your database.
So, you might get an idea of this potential risk. Now, the hacker will create a new admin account. So, that they could easily gain access to your website.
You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance. Moreover, it can easily enter your database virtually. Because the hackers may try to send spam links with infected codes.
Phishing attack
Phishing is a common type of security issue in eCommerce websites. Hackers pose as legitimate business owners in this case. And how so? They send messages or emails to your users.
Furthermore, they attempt to imitate legitimate business websites to fool people into thinking it is you. Customers later caught up in their tactics.
Hackers employ various phishing techniques. You’ve probably seen some messages requesting action.
Supposedly they ask you to take action or some function may stop. Or they may tell you don’t shop anymore, but if you click the link, you will earn points. And there you have it, their trap. Because they only need your credentials to access your data.
Cross-site scripting
Here is another common eCommerce security threat. It is the injection of malicious code into the browser.
However, it appears to be simpler to grasp. However, it is all over the internet. CSS is a very clever way of attacking your website. Without your knowledge, hackers load and open web pages.
As a result, the infected Java Script pages will crawl to your website. It then steals any data, disrupts operations, and causes your website to fail.
File inclusion exploits
Hackers find one or the other way to enter your website. This exploitation allows attackers to access arbitrary files on a system.
You can say the vulnerable code is the probability to get attacked first. Simply, it is to load remote files by hackers to a website.
As your website has PHP in it, hackers can grab access to it. Moreover, it can affect files within WordPress installs.
Complex online transactions
When your online shoppers face complexities in payment, you can guess a threat.
Because hackers may not find a way to enter your confidential data. Instead, they disrupt the payment mechanism of the eCommerce site. So you could take any professional assistance to get out of these issues.
You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance. You should always keep a point of contact with your users.
So that in case of disruptions, you get alarmed! However, such measures often fail to disclose the usage of personal data.
Tips to ensure eCommerce security
After having a lengthy discussion on potential threats faced by businesses. We then go over some security precautions to take for your eCommerce site.
Integrate reliable hosts
Try to find some reliable and secure hosting. However, hearing it again seems cliche. However, hosting is critical for eCommerce sites. Every provider, believe it or not, should not be trusted. So, it is wise to scrutinize every hosting provider you choose.
Many people face eCommerce security, reliability, speed, etc. Moreover, this provider sometimes doesn’t take your security seriously. Furthermore, this provider does not always take your security seriously. And may invite unwanted hackers, crashes, downtimes, and so on.
Spend no time correcting your host. Replace it with something else. It also depends on your financial situation. It’s as straightforward as it gets. You will get more if you spend more.
Secure with wp-config.php
If you have a way with WordPress, wp-config.php is not new to you. Because this file holds critical data on WordPress installation. So, you can call it the most crucial file in your root directory. And if you protect it, eCommerce security your website. Moreover, it makes your site foolproof from hackers’ security.
Because the wp-config file is inaccessible to all. Although, you can move your wp-config.php and then the root directory to protect your site. You may think moving the files here and there can protect security. Yes,
Restrict file editing
If your user has an admin WordPress dashboard, they have the power to do it all. Because of this way they can add, remove or edit any file of their choice.
Maybe they alter WordPress plugins and themes. So disallowing file editing can save your nine! Because hackers can easily enter your WordPress website to modify anything.
Adjust directory permissions
The directory as the name suggests has all the necessary information about your site. And if its permissions are not set, it can create havoc. Change your file permissions to add on the protection layer.
You just need to set permissions for the directory at different levels. Moreover, you can do it manually with the Control panel or directly from the terminal. Try the .htacess if you want to keep a safe second option in your directory.
Block the hotlinking
When creating an eCommerce site, you can use images to make it more appealing. But what if the images are on a different server? You must pay for what you intend to use for your website.
Otherwise, they may consider your action illegal! However, if you use the image’s URL, it will take you to a different website.
Use hotlinking to prevent this from happening to you. Because it deters people from photographing you. Even hackers could not change anything.
Deter DDoS attacks
A DoS attack is nothing new to you if you are familiar with networks and security. DDoS attacks send multiple requests to your server, causing it to become overloaded. It also slows down bandwidth for legitimate users.
These requests, however, do not disrupt your website files and only cause sites to crash. You may have heard about these attacks on major technology companies such as GitHub.
You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance. Simply put, the plan is to crash your website so that no one can access it. To limit such attacks, try some security management systems.
Security to login page
If you have WordPress, you must be worried about login credentials. And it also saves from brute force attacks. So, you could try these tips to maintain security at logins.
Set website lockdown
The lockdown feature can erase multiple brute-force attacks. So failed login attempts get raised at checkpoints.
Moreover, in case of repetitive password attempts the site gets locked. And the hacker may not enter your website.
Furthermore, you get notified about the number of attempts done to log in to your site.
Implement the 2FA
Now, it may sound a little technical, although it’s not! Two-factor authentication helps to amplify your website security. And how? The user when trying to log in gets two questions. And later the answers get verified by the system.
You have seen some websites that ask for any secret questions, codes, or any name. Here the authentication gets mapped to stored information. And the user gets access to your site if the answer matches!
Use the email
If you recall, WordPress website security only requires a username and password. However, implementing the use of email instead can improve security. Because anyone can try different combinations to circumvent the subtle authentication.
However, the email address can play the right game. As the user will receive a unique code to confirm that it is you.
As a result, the hacker can’t obtain the code and gets denied to your website. Additionally, try to include email IDs that are distinct in appearance. Additionally, try implementing WordPress login plugins on your site.
Rename your URL
You can access the WordPress login page via wp-login.php or wp-admin from the main URL. And it can easily get into hackers’ approach to brute force and get to your site.
Moreover, they first get into your database by trying almost every combination. However, the above pointers can still help you with some eCommerce security levels.
Although, WordPress offers HTTPS security for login. But this way can save for any unauthorized access to the login page. You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance.
You can set the URL to anything you want and hide the login to disable any credentials.
Adjust your passwords
Passwords control security in various ways. Whether on WordPress or another platform. Passwords must be sufficiently secure that guessing them takes time. Consider uppercase, lowercase, symbols, and so on.
Also, try to change your passwords regularly. Because any hacker who gains access to your site once can enter it again. And this could cause problems even if they arrive after 6 months. Examine the strength of your password.
Include words to heighten eCommerce security that are difficult to guess. Remember to avoid using all lowercase or uppercase letters. Even if you don’t remember, don’t overburden it with symbols. Longer phrases should be at bay for hackers to guess.
Utilize password manager
If you cannot find a good password for your website. Then you can go for help from the password manager. As the name suggests, it helps to save protected passwords.
Moreover, it can create difficult passwords that are hard to get. Furthermore, these managers generate and secure your passwords for security. And too without much hassle.
Automate idle users
Users that can access the admin WordPress page can be a potential threat. And you don’t want any user to access your site without your permission. Because it allows you to restrict any unauthorized access to even hackers!
Avoid the users get to your store by automating idle logs. So they don’t allow users to access it. You can hire WordPress Developer for more guidance. Furthermore, you can use a plugin to set login and checkout timing.
Secure your WordPress website database
Your website’s data is in your database. So remember to secure with some mentioned tips.
Change the prefix
You must be familiar with table prefixes and you should change them regularly. Try to keep it to something unique. If you continue to use pre-saved prefixes your site is prone to SQL injection.
You can prevent it by using wp- to avoid any attacks. Also, you can use certain security plugins to maintain protection across the website. You can get WordPress support for more guidance.
Backup website updates
WordPress website allows you to keep eCommerce security and backup. So, here you can keep a backup to ensure no loss of data. Moreover, backup works best to keep data for future reference.
if you have a backup, you can restore it in case of data loss. Furthermore, WordPress plugins ensure regular backups.
Monitor your logs
If you are operating on multiple WordPress sites, you should monitor every log. So, you could use multi-author logs to understand user activity. You should know what contributors to change passwords. Your users may be changing usernames and passwords regularly.
Such as you could implement certain themes and plugins for admins. Moreover, you should keep checking admins and contributors.
Secure your WordPress admin dashboard
WordPress admin dashboard can be a little tricky when you have a larger user base. But for hackers, it is just a treasure chest! As the attackers will look for admin logins to crash into your site.
And to secure your dashboard, here are some tips.
Secure wp-admin directory
As discussed earlier, the wp-admin directory is the base of your WordPress site. So you can guess any trespass to this part can disrupt the site. Although you can implement a safe layer of password protection. By not just applying passwords and plugins. So, the owner could implement the 2 passwords to access.
Moreover, the first secures the login page, and the second protects the admin dashboard. So, you can get an idea that offers double-layer security. Furthermore, allowing hackers to apply more combinations to try!
Utilize SSL certificate
You’ve heard of SSL, and now comes the power play. Because SSL certificates protect the site’s data transmission to users.
It is also difficult to breach data if eCommerce site owners integrate this certificate. As a result, even hackers were unable to access your website. Although obtaining an SSL certificate is difficult.
However, WordPress allows for seamless integration. You can get WordPress support for more guidance. SSL certificates increase your security and dependability.
Additionally, improving your traffic and SERPs. As a result, SSL aids you in attracting potential customers.
Add user accounts
Your eCommerce site has various users to handle. So you should consider multiple users for admin access. Because allowing each user to edit and make changes can disrupt your site flow.
Although you can implement strong passwords that may not be easy to break. Moreover, it ensures security from different angles. Remember not to save your admin password as ” Red apple” or ” Hello world”.
Change admin username
Never use the same name”admin” as your username. If you are an admin to control the activities, hackers get it.
As there will be no room for guessing hackers. So, try to change the name as well. Because this way, they have a username and a password to guess. Remember to leave no loopholes for the hackers. Although you could always use security plugins to amplify safety.
Conclusion: If you are a business owner, your store security remains your priority. Our above-mentioned potential security measures will help you stay alert. But you will need more assistance from experts.
For more consideration, consult WordPress eCommerce development for your projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1.What are the three security domains?
- confidentiality
- integrity
- availability
Q2.What are the top three e-commerce security concerns?
- Frauds
- electronic payment
- system data
Q3.Which system is used to increase security in e-commerce?
SSL is used to authenticate and encrypt connections between networked computers.
Q4.What is the need for eCommerce security?
E-commerce security protects customers’ and businesses’ data from potential threats like phishing attacks, hacking, credit card fraud, etc.
Q5.How do you quantify security risk?
Risk is calculated by multiplying the threat likelihood value by the impact value, and the result is classified as high, medium, or low.
