Are you worried about keeping your online business safe from payment fraudsters?
Every day, thousands of online businesses fall victim to digital payment fraud attacks. Fraudsters are coming up with new scams every day, and they’re becoming increasingly sophisticated.
If you don’t have digital payment security checks in place, your business could be the next target.
The good news?
Digital payment security doesn’t have to be complicated. You can protect your business from most online threats by…
Implementing digital payment security checks that are…
- Free or low cost
- Easy to implement
- Use the right tools
…and will instantly improve security for your business.
What you’re about to learn:
- Why Digital Payment Security Checks Are Important
- Most Common Threats To Online Payments
- 5 Security Checks Every Business Should Have
- How To Build A Foolproof Payment Security Strategy
Why Digital Payment Security Checks Are Important
Digital payment security checks verify that a transaction is valid before allowing money to transfer from one account to another.
They act as a filter between your money and anyone trying to steal it. Without digital payment security checks in place, fraudsters can access your business as if they were a legitimate customer.
That’s why it’s so important to run security checks on every transaction.
Here are some statistics that show how big of an issue fraud has become:
- Per the FTC, fraud losses hit a record $12.5 billion in 2024
- While larger businesses do face attacks, small and medium businesses are targeted most often due to their lack of security measures
When you perform digital payment security checks on your business, you’re confirming the identity of every individual that wants to run a transaction against your business. Verification services like paysend verification ensure users are verified before allowing money to send or receive. It’s all about verifying identities.
Here’s the scary part…
A lot of online business owners don’t think about payment security until it’s too late. Once your business has been compromised by fraudsters, it’s nearly impossible to get your reputation back. Chargebacks, lost revenue and dissatisfied customers are a business owners worst nightmare.
Most Common Threats To Online Payments
Before jumping into the different security checks you can use to prevent online fraud, let’s go over some common threats you should be aware of.
Online payment security is always changing, and fraudsters are finding new scams every day.
Keep an eye out for fraudsters trying:
- Phishing scams. Emails or websites designed to steal your payment information. They are responsible for a large percentage of online fraud loss.
- Card-not-present fraud. A form of fraud that occurs when a physical card is not used during an online transaction. This is the most common form of ecommerce credit card fraud.
- Account takeover. Happens when a fraudster gains access to a valid customer’s account and makes purchases without permission.
- Synthetic identity fraud. Completely fake identities created by fraudsters using any information they can find.
These are only a few of the threats businesses face when it comes to online payment security.
Banks are reporting that…
According to the AFP Payments Fraud Survey Report, 79% of organizations were exposed to payment fraud in 2024. As you can see, it’s nearly impossible for an online business to avoid being attacked by fraudsters.
There’s always going to be new scams coming up that you haven’t thought of. Which is why it’s crucial to have digital payment security checks in place that can protect your business from known and unknown threats.
Keep reading to learn how…
5 Security Checks Every Business Should Have
It’s time to learn about the security checks every online business should have in place.
If you’re serious about protecting your online business from fraudsters, consider implementing these 5 security checks.
Multi-Factor Authentication
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds another layer of security to transactions made against your business. A common example would be requiring both a password and a one-time code sent to a user’s phone.
Something as simple as this can prevent unauthorized users from accessing customer accounts. MFA is quick, easy and one of the best places to start.
SSL Encryption
SSL encryption secures the information being passed between a customer’s browser and your business website. You know the lock icon in your browser tab? That’s SSL encryption at work.
Without SSL encryption, all information passed between your website and customers travels in plain-text. That means names, passwords, credit cards, you name it – anyone can view that information if they know where to look. SSL Encryption is free and should be implemented on every website.
Transaction Monitoring
Processing a transaction and hoping for the best is never a good idea. The right transaction monitoring software can help you identify potentially fraudulent transactions as they happen.
Many services use machine learning to detect suspicious patterns. If multiple expensive transactions are coming from the same IP address, they will automatically be flagged.
PCI Compliance
PCI stands for Payment Card Industry. A globally recognized standard that ensures any business that processes card payments follow strict security guidelines.
If you accept card payments and aren’t PCI compliant, you’re asking for trouble. PCI DSS compliance ensures you have the right security measures in place and can help prevent data breaches.
AVS & CVV Check
CVV and address verification are simple security checks that catch numerous fraudulent transactions. An AVS check verifies that the billing address provided matches the card issuer’s on file.
CVV checks are when you verify the 3-digit code on the back of someone’s card.
Both checks can be done quickly and will flag thousands of fraudulent transactions.
How To Build A Foolproof Payment Security Strategy
Installing security software is pointless if you don’t use them together. Think of digital payment security checks like layers in a protection matrix.
Here’s what that means:
If you had a bank vault with 10 locks on it, and a robber broke in by simply kicking down the door. Did your locks help prevent the robbery? No!
But what if your vault only had 1 lock on it, and the robber spent hours trying to figure out how to pick that lock. Chances are, they would have given up and looked for an easier target.
Each security check you implement prevents a different method of fraud. When you layer multiple security checks on top of each other, you’re hardening your defenses against attacks.
Follow these steps to ensure your online business has a tight security strategy:
- Use all 5 security checks listed above.
- Keep all your payment software up to date (including security patches)
- Train your employees to watch for suspicious activity.
- Perform periodic security audits to find weak spots.
- Stay on top of the latest payment security trends.
If you stay vigilant, there’s no way fraudsters will be able to outsmart you.
Summary
Digital payment security checks are vital to the success of your online business. As online fraud continues to rise, taking the proper precautions could be the difference between success and failure.
Remember:
- Know what threats are targeting online payments
- Perform multi-factor authentication on user accounts
- Implement SSL encryption on your website
- Use real-time transaction monitoring
- Make sure your business is PCI compliant
- Use AVS and CVV checks on every transaction
- Use multiple layers of security to protect your business.
Online payment fraud is not going anywhere. But that doesn’t mean you can’t protect yourself from it!
