Authentication: A Necessity for ecommerce Sites Keeping you customers’ information safe Keeping your customers’ information secure is a top priority when it comes to ecommerce. It is crucial for your business to do everything in your power to ensure that customers’ information is safe on your website. One of the ways to do this is by having an authentication system in place. Authentication is the practice of verifying that someone is who they claim to be. When a customer is logging on to your ecommerce site, where they have their credit card information stored, you want to make absolute certain that they are indeed that customer. Prevent Hacking Attacks According to Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report, authentication-based hacking is the most common type of hacking. It is up to your ecommerce company to have authentication that offers the most security for your customers. Your business has to find a balance between strong security and ease of use for your customers. Your ecommerce site needs to use an authentication method that helps keep your customers’ information secure but isn’t so burdensome that it turns potential customers away. Authentication Types There are various types of authentication that your ecommerce site can use. Some may be better suited than others to fit the needs of your ecommerce business and customers. Single-Factor Authentication Single-factor authentication refers using a username and a password to authenticate the user. In this case, it is usually up to the user to come up with a strong password, preferably one that they haven’t used for any other accounts. This method relies on the customer to help protect themselves. While this method is used by many websites, it may not be the ideal type of authentication to use for an ecommerce site that handles customers’ credit card information. Two-Factor Authentication Two-factor authentication requires using two different methods to authenticate that the customer is who they claim to be. The first factor used in ecommerce is usually a name and password. The second factor can be any number of things, including a PIN or a code sent via text message. This type of authentication is more secure than single-factor authentication because it requires the customer to have two different pieces of information in order to be able to log on. Multi-Factor Authentication Multi-factor authentication means that three or more methods are used to authenticate a customer. Some factors that may be used include the previous ones listed as well as others including biometric factors such as fingerprints and voice recognition. While using biometrics used to seem far-fetched and costly, smartphones and their apps have made using biometric identifiers a valid possibility. Multi-factor authentication could be considered the safest type of authentication, but it does have its downsides. Customers may be less likely to want to purchase from your ecommerce store if it is time consuming and a hassle for them to log on to your ecommerce website to purchase an item. Clarity Can Help No matter what type of authentication your ecommerce company chooses to use, it is up to you secure your customers information any way you can. Clarity has worked for almost a decade building secure ecommerce websites for companies. Our team is skilled at putting authentication in place to help keep your customers’ information safe and private. To learn more about how Clarity can help your website and your customers’ information stay safe, contact us today!