Cybercrime is a growing threat that is having a huge impact on how people use the internet. It is changing the way consumers do business, causing massive security concerns and issues for B2B companies operating online. From cell phones to iPads, tablets to laptops, not to mention the PC, with so many of us connecting to the web through so many different devices, the stakes are higher than ever today.
Let’s take a look at the ripple effects of cybercrime on B2B companies — and how to overcome them.
Concern About Credit Card Data Hacking is Impacting Sales
Credit card leaks are becoming more commonplace and data breaches are on the rise, impacting both B2C and B2B eCommerce sites. Due to recent data breach incidents in the news, consumers are more way of posting credit card information, which prevents some online sales. Concerns over payment security cause incredibly high shopping cart abandonment rates.
McAfee, PayPal, and Verisign are just a few companies that offer trust badges that help customers feel safer due to stringent security guidelines your business has to meet to earn them. You can also improve customer confidence by ensuring that your website has both strong HTTPS encryption and updated SSL certificates.
Connected Devices are Vulnerable Security Risks
Do you remember the story about the Smart-Refrigerator that sent spam emails to thousands of addresses? The Internet of Things (IoT) has made life easier and more convenient in many ways, but a hacker can hijack them and wreak havoc on computer systems.
Just as consumers must protect their smart devices with antivirus software, your company needs to inspire consumer confidence by protecting software with key-based digital signatures. Use a secure boot, and secure your network with an IoT turnkey solution.
Ransomware is a Massive Threat to Businesses
Having your system, and your whole business held hostage to ransomware can only be solved by prevention. It’s rarely possible to track the culprits down, and law enforcement and the government aren’t going to be able to fix it.
Protect your organization from ransomware attacks through vigilant automatic backups and team training. Keeping regular data backups will give you something to roll back to if or when ransomware strikes. Educating your team about links that seem wonky and emails that look fishy is important. Instruct them to notify you immediately if they think you’ve been infected so you can disconnect networked devices and contain the damage.
Cookie Consent Legislation is a Thing if You Have EU Customers
All EU countries passed privacy legislation six years ago, protecting consumers from unknowingly having their personal information tracked. Any site that targets audiences in the EU is required to notify website visitors that they use cookies, explain what data is collected through the cookies, how the information is going to be used, and specifically get permission from the visitor to use cookies to track them. If you don’t comply, there could be some unpleasant impacts, especially on eCommerce sites.
Make sure you’re automatically staying in compliance by using a third-party cookie consent management tool such as Cookiebot or Cookie Collective to add cookie consent compliance to your site.
Protect Your Company and Your Customers
Because cybercrime is seeing such explosive growth, your company can face multiple challenges. To inspire trust from your customers, it’s critical that you put solutions in place to protect data and personal information now to reduce disruptions in the future.
