So – you’re in the shop you own or you are monitoring the purchases that are coming in on your e-commerce system. How can you ensure that no fraudulent transactions are made? By law in some countries, if a purchase is made on your website that isn’t authorised by the original cardholder, you could be responsible for refunding their money – even if you sent the item out to a fraudster. Therefore, it isn’t just protocol to be careful when checking for a fraudulent transaction – but essential.
1. Question one: Is their shipping address different to their billing address? If so, alarm bells should be ringing. By having additional verification measures, you can prevent a fraudster from being able to request items they purchase with a card that isn’t theirs to be sent to their address.
2. Question two: Is all your machinery working correctly? Without you knowing, your e-commerce systems could have been hacked or your machines tampered with that makes your network vulnerable to a fraudulent transaction. You should check everything is secure routinely.
3. Question three: Can you verify customer information using the BIN database? By looking up the information of consumers on websites such as BINBase.com, you can double-check the credentials of your clientele for making purchases. Even though this can take more time, it can be essential at times if you want to restrict the accountability you have for unauthorised purchases made in your business.
4. Question four: Take all express shipping orders with a pinch of salt. For many fraudsters, requesting courier delivery on the goods and services they order allows them to receive items they have fraudulently purchased before the package can be intercepted, or before they can be caught. As you are financially responsible in the event of ID fraud, always investigate suspicious urgent shipping requests.
5. Question five: Do you ask for your customers to sign up? If so, make sure that you ask for added authentication upon signing up. Even though it’s important to strike the balance between asking them for more personal details and wasting their time, asking for additional financial information that fraudsters may not have access to can prevent from cards being used illegitimately on your website. It might cost you slightly more to enforce, but it will be worth it when none of the orders you process are fraudulent.
6. Question six: Does a certain order align with a well-known fraudulent transaction scam that you have heard about? Sometimes, scammers and hackers will use a certain technique in order to acquire goods and services fraudulently. By reading up on the latest reports about the schemes in operation, you will be able to watch out for the warning signs in your business that these techniques are being used. If you suspect something, you can either suspend their account and ask for more identification, or report the incident to the authorities if you are certain that a case of credit card fraud is to blame.
