Online payment options are increasing more than ever. And the ability to make online transactions with just a few taps on the screen has made our lives easier. But with the increase in the options for online payments, the risk of payment security is also increasing.
Payment security in online payments is a big concern for customers. And with the surge in mobile payments, it has become a need of the hour. So, every small and big business has started taking action toward online payment security.
According to a study by Globe Newswire, the global payment security market is expected to grow to $43.13 billion by 2026. It shows the importance of payment security in online payments.
What is Payment Security?
Payment security includes rules, regulations, and all the security measures required to protect customers from security breaches. Security breaches include privacy breaches, data leaks, or stolen money.
Payment security comes with multiple security layers based on the type of business. These layers are required to avoid unauthorized transactions and various other fraudulent activities.
Payment security is one of the most important aspects for businesses to retain customers. so, they need to stay compliant with the PCI security standard specially designed for online payment security.
PCI Security Standard Council
Before understanding the business obligations for secured payments, let’s understand PCI SSC, the council that has formed them.
The payment Card Industry Security Standard Council (PCI SSC) is a global forum for implementing security standards for account data protection. It focuses on enhancing global payment account data security.
The PCI standards have four levels which depend on the number of transactions performed by a business in one year. The more transactions a business performs, the higher are their security standards. Businesses are required to fall under these four levels to ensure payment and data security.
The PCI standard for payment security is PCI DSS (PCI Data Security Standard). Compliance with the PCI DSS and other applicable PCI Standards is obligatory for businesses that accept or process payment transactions.
Business Obligations by PCI
Businesses are accountable to provide customers with secured processes of payments. So, the PCI DSS came up with the 3-step process of business obligations for secure online payments. They are Assess, Remediate, and Report.
Assess
Assess is the process of making a checklist of your IT resources and business procedures for processing credit and debit cards and then assessing them for any potential security loopholes that could expose cardholders’ data.
Remediate
After assessing, if you find any loopholes, remediate is the process of fixing those loopholes by following various security guidelines. Remediation will help in lowering security risks.
Report
Once the loopholes are fixed, you need to compile the records required by PCI DSS and submit them to the acquiring banks and card payment brands. This step is necessary to validate the remediation step.
Following this three-step process is a continuous process of compliance to meet the PCI DSS prerequisites. These steps also ensure guaranteed cardholder data security.
Tips to Secure Online Payments
Now, you are aware of the obligations that businesses need to follow for payment security. Yet, it is best to ensure foolproof security. Here are some tips to ensure extra layers of security in secure online payments:
Data Encryption
Encryption of sensitive user data during the transmission process can help keep online payment security in check. The major encryption protocols include Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS).
Secure Socket Layer (SSL) is a standard technology used to keep the internet connection secure. It helps in protecting the sensitive data between two systems. As payments are also done using the internet and involve two systems in the process, SSL can protect the data of your customers
Transport Layer Security (TLS) is an updated, and more secure version of SSL. It helps in protecting the privacy and security of data for all payment communication in the online form.
Get a Suitable Payment Gateway
A payment gateway allows businesses to accept online payments from customers. It offers a secure connection between the business’s website/app and the consumer’s bank.
It is essential to secure customers’ sensitive data. So, choosing the right payment gateway is crucial for businesses. And so, you must consider factors such as the processes it uses to keep the transactions secured and the tools it uses for the process.
In addition, you should also consider what security standards it adheres to, and who can access the payment data. You can also consider consulting an industry expert before choosing a payment gateway for your business.
Implement Secure Electronic Transaction (SET)
SET or Secure Electronic Transaction is a security protocol for online payments created by VISA and MasterCard. This system’s main aim is to maintain the safety and confidentiality of transactions for everyone involved in the online payment process.
SET focuses on necessary operations like authenticating the merchant and cardholder, keeping security procedures in check, ensuring the maintenance of payment protocols, and keeping the payment data secure and private.
Under this protocol, digital certificates are generated for all the parties involved in the transaction. Then these parties are provided with a digital key to confirm their identity. SET makes sure that only the parties with the correct digital key can confirm the payment.
Deploy Fraud Protection System (AVS)
There are various fraud protection systems in the market specially designed for payment security. One such system is Address Verification Service (AVS). AVS is a fraud protection system designed and provided by credit card processors and banks.
The purpose of AVS is to detect suspicious activities in credit card transactions and prevent payment fraud. It verifies the address of cardholders with bank records before accepting or rejecting the payment.
With the fruitful use of the AVS system, you can prevent digital payment fraud for your customers.
Implement Security Systems – (Tokenization, Biometrics, 3DS)
The security systems that work to ensure the security of the transaction from the very beginning of it, are essential for online transactions. The most effective security systems are Tokenization, Biometrics, and 3D secure.
Tokenization
Tokenization is an extra layer of security to protect customers’ payment data from data breaches and identity theft. It creates a unique alphanumeric token for cardholders’ sensitive information like name, card details, address, or bank account details. This token can be used only once and will have no meaning once utilized.
Biometric System
The biometric payment system is a Point-of-Sale (POS) technology used to authenticate an online payment through biometric scans like a finger, face, eye, etc. The most commonly used biometric system is the fingerprint scan. A fingerprint scan is used instead of a ‘card to swipe’. It also has 2-factor biometric authentication.
3D Secure
3D secure is an authentication system developed to prevent the unauthorized use of credit/debit cards in online transactions. It makes the payment experience extra secure as all the payments go through an authentication process either by a PIN or an OTP.
By implementing all these tips for secure online transactions, you can achieve a payment system of utmost security for the customers.
Concluding Thoughts
With the rise of contactless online payments, the need for payment security has also increased. So, every small and big business must follow PCI-business obligations to secure their customer’s data. However, they also need to add some extra security layers to make it a foolproof solution.
Therefore, payment security plays a vital role in the online payment process by allowing you to generate a sense of trust and responsibility among your customers. Because, in the end, trustful customers equal successful business.