E-commerce
How To Prevent eCommerce Fraud
While it’s not possible to protect yourself against all online threats, below are some of the most common types of eCommerce fraud – plus tips on how to help minimize exposure.

There are anonymous hackers all over the globe who work around the clock trying to bypass your company’s security defenses. Larger organizations likely have the resources to defend themselves against eCommerce fraud and other malicious attacks, but this doesn’t mean they’re immune to breaches, as we’ve witnessed in the news.
This isn’t always true for smaller companies. Inc. reports that an estimated 60% of small businesses go under within six months of being breached.
While it’s not possible to protect yourself against all online threats, below are some of the most common types of eCommerce fraud – plus tips on how to help minimize exposure.
1. Card testing fraud
Criminals often test stolen cards by running tiny transactions first. While it may be attractive to overlook a few lost pennies here and there, every dollar in direct theft can translate up to $3 in hidden costs due to fees and penalties.2
Protect yourself by using fraud management filters to set minimum transaction amounts for online orders. If your lowest-priced item is $2, the smallest approved transaction should be that amount or higher.
2. Stolen credit card fraud
If you sell physical goods, watch for this scam. Thieves use stolen cards to buy products before having them sent to a reshipper for collection. However, using fraud filters can help you flag orders where the billing and shipping addresses don’t match. The sale might be a legitimate one, but it won’t go through until you’ve had time to investigate.
3. Account takeover fraud
Cybercriminals can do a lot of harm if they gain access to your customers’ or employees’ login credentials. Fortunately, you can help limit this practice by:
- Restricting employee access to sensitive data on a need-to-know basis (also known as the principle of least privilege)
- Mandating longer passwords for all logins – complete with symbols, numbers, and mixed-case letters
- Requiring two-factor authentication (2FA) in which employees and customers must pass additional verification steps (beyond the usual username and password)
4. Chargeback fraud
Also known as “friendly” fraud, this scam involves customers who buy from you online pretending that:
- They didn’t place the order
- The package never arrived.
- The package arrived damaged.
Proving that you’re in the right can be tough, which is why chargeback fraud results in $30 billion in annual losses for online businesses. You can help reduce the frequency of this scam by:
- Making it easier for customers to request refunds with a clear return policy
- You are adding tracking and signature requirements to outgoing packages so you can verify delivery independently.
- Disabling guest checkout to make anonymous online ordering impossible
Even with a huge budget and an experienced security team, thwarting every cyberattack is not always possible. It is figuratively an arms race, with criminals constantly devising more inventive methods of bypassing security protocols and gaining access to sensitive information. However, those who build the strongest defenses have the best chances of avoiding the worst attacks.
For a more comprehensive overview of eCommerce fraud prevention tips and strategies, see the accompanying resource.
This information is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, financial, or tax advice. Readers should contact their attorneys, financial advisors, or tax professionals to obtain guidance concerning any particular matter.
- “60 Percent of Small Businesses Fold Within 6 Months of a Cyber Attack. Here’s How to Protect Yourself,” Inc., 7 May 2018
- “CNP Fraud Costs US Merchants $3.36 for Every $1 of Direct Fraud Loss,” CardNotPresent, 30 July 2020
- “13 Scary Chargeback Facts,” Chargebacks911, 20 October 2020
Fiserv, an eCommerce platform provider, created an infographic.
E-commerce
4 Communication Tools You Need to Integrate in Your Ecommerce App
Nevertheless, the right communication tools can help you improve your eCommerce app by boosting customer satisfaction. Here are four channels you need to integrate.

Communication features are a crucial element of eCommerce apps. But it can be easy to neglect this aspect between making sure that the products display correctly and the payment methods all work.
Nevertheless, the right communication tools can help you improve your eCommerce app by boosting customer satisfaction. Here are four channels you need to integrate.
1. Live Chat
To begin with, live chat should be a standard feature of any eCommerce app.
It provides a quick and easy way for potential buyers to reach out to sellers if they have questions about their products. Ultimately, this helps increase engagement and reduce cart abandonment.
The same is true when it comes to customer care. Having a support team member only a click of a button away can help resolve any issues instantly.
2. Voice and Video Calling
Another communication channel that more and more eCommerce apps are integrating is voice and video calling.
Calls are still the single most popular method of communication for customers to reach out to businesses. It allows people to get answers fast and establish a real human connection.
Integrating voice and video calling directly into your eCommerce app, rather than just listing sellers’ numbers, for example, has several advantages.
Most significantly, it increases trust. Potential buyers no longer have to call an unknown, potentially foreign, number. Instead, they can reach out directly to the safety of your app.
3. Chatbots
Chatbots are a third communication tool that is fast becoming standard for eCommerce apps.
Many inquiries, especially in customer service, are routine issues. Questions about order status and delivery delays. Trouble accessing user accounts. Problems with return shipments.
In-app chatbots are fantastic at handling these issues. This increases customer satisfaction, as user questions are answered swiftly and thoroughly. It also frees your human agents to deal with more complex issues and assist customers who need it most.
4. Contact Forms and Ticketing
Finally, the classic customer service communication method should still be a staple part of any modern eCommerce app: contact forms and ticketing.
Many people prefer to leave a formal paper trail when something goes wrong with an order, a payment, or an app itself. Contact forms and ticketing systems can help them do just that.
You can provide different forms custom-tailored to the most common issues customers reach out to you for. It’s even possible to include a drop-down menu to let customers specify directly which of their orders is the subject of their inquiry.
In addition, a well-designed form is easy to implement and intuitive for people to fill out.
Once they’ve submitted it, they’ll get a formal notification that their request has been noted and will be treated as soon as possible.
5. Final Thoughts
A well-chosen selection of communication features can take any eCommerce app to the next level.
By integrating channels such as live chat, voice and video calls, forms, and chatbots, you can ensure that all of your users’ questions are answered immediately and get the best experience possible from your app.
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