San Antonio, Texas – As retailers begin a new year, they are facing a similar dangerous threat – cyberattacks. Experts predict it will hit another record high in 2023 and it will be costly. A report from Cybersecurity Ventures predicts that cybercrime will cost its victims more than $8 trillion dollars worldwide. The same report predicts an ongoing 15% increase during the next five years – hitting $10.5 trillion in losses. Experts say more than 90% of businesses are at risk. Despite implementing security measures, a Forbes study revealed that cybercriminals can hack 93% of company networks.
One reason for the increase is more businesses and organizations are connected to more devices and exposed to more devices via the Internet, especially with team members working remotely according to the Internet of Things (ioT). At the same time, as a whole, they are investing less money and time to increase security. Experts at the Thought Lab predict that the main cause of cyber-attacks this year will be caused by “misconfigurations, human error and poor maintenance.”
Patrick Hodo, CIO of Texas-based software company Red Maple, says that the best defense is a good option and that begins by moving to the cloud. A McKinsey Global Report agrees and says in 2023 cloud technology will become the number one method for increasing security. Moving information to the cloud is a simple and cost-effective strategy for protecting your data in the event of a cyber-attack.
“Another best practice, that I highly encourage, is for businesses to get out of the data storage business. That means no longer collecting and storing sensitive data – such as credit card numbers – on your website. This one practice can greatly help mitigate attacks,” adds Hodo.
That is one of the reasons Hodo and his team developed Clever Division™ software. With this patented solution by Red Maple, retailers no longer have to collect the entire credit card number. This takes away a main reason for hackers to target retailers because the valuable credit card numbers are NOT stored online.
Clever Division is the most secure PCI platform on the market today. Here is how it works to protect companies and their customers from theft, fraud, and data breaches:
- Customers place their order online, by phone, email or text and enter only part of their credit card number.
- The software then sends the customer a link with two-factor authentication where customers input the rest of the number via phone, text, or email.
- The cloud-based security software divides and scrambles the credit card date, locks it up in separate vaults, then sends the business an encrypted token from their processor to verify the sale.
While using the cloud and NOT storing valuable date are two key tips to protect your valuable information from cyber criminals, there are a few other basic tools to protect your website from attacks. The Federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency offers these tips.
- Install an SSL certificate. SSL, also known as Secure Sockets Layer. This protocol creates an encrypted link between a web server and a web browser.
- Update your website on a regular basis.
- Use strong passwords and encourage your team to do the same.
- Back up your site often.
- Train your staff about the importance of these steps.
For more information about the latest technology to protect retailers from cyber-attacks, contact Red Maple’s PR Manager Diane White, Diane@DianeWhitePR.com or at 918-770-3905. Visit redmaple.com for additional resources.
