Having a website is no longer a big deal.
But it wasn’t always so. Once upon a time, merely having a website was a sign of business success and sophistication. Very few businesses owned websites or even knew what to do with them. Web developers were making a kill and the tech world was in a frenzy.
So, what changed?
Well, the novelty wore off and people faced a new reality – cyber threats. It soon dawned on businesses that websites were beyond those cute little interfaces. They came with loads of baggage that could shut down businesses in the blink of an eye.
Yes, websites are cool but we now have a new kettle of fish to fry – cyber criminals. These ferocious crooks will stop at nothing to invade your website, mess up your operations, steal information and resources and grind your business to a halt.
It gets even worse if you run a financial institution. In 2022 alone, card-related fraud grew by a whopping 10%. That’s quite alarming, and logically, every upwardly mobile company is seeking ways of securing their websites against these online vermins.
If you also desire a secure website, safe from the crawling fingers of cyber crooks, then you’re in the right place. You’re about to learn emerging technologies and trends that are changing the game in website security.
According to Sir Isaac Newton’s third law of motion, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Likewise, for every action cyberattackers take, there is a reaction by cyber experts. These reactions are emerging technologies and trends that guarantee the security of your website. Let’s check them out.
Banking fraud detection software
Banks and other financial institutions are the most vulnerable when it comes to cyberattacks. The reason is simple – they hold people’s money and handle transactions. This makes them premium targets for cybercriminals. Thankfully, banking fraud detection software reduces this vulnerability to a large extent. Check out these tools if you’re interested in how fraud detection software can protect your website from cyber-attacks.
Fraud detection software leverages data analysis and machine learning to monitor customer accounts, scan transactions and learn fraud patterns. It combines anti-money laundering, Know Your Customers (KYC) and other authentication features to detect fraudsters and protect customer accounts.
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Biometric authentication:
Biometric authentication is one of the anti-fraud measures in the web security sphere. The logic behind it is simple – a criminal can steal your password and even steal your device but they can’t steal your biometrics. Biometrics are biological and behavioral features peculiar to you alone.
This security hack entails verifying your identity through biological characteristics like fingerprints, palm prints, iris scans, retina scans and facial and voice recognition, among others. Biometric authentication also involves confirming your identity through behavioral patterns and traits like typing rhythm and signature peculiarities.
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Multi-factor authentication (MFA):
One trend you shouldn’t miss out on is multi-factor authentication (MFA). Since a lot of cyber attacks come through unauthorized access, it makes sense to improve user authentication in multiple ways. With MFA, users are required to produce different kinds of identification for proof of identity. This extra layer of security is a potent deterrent to internet crooks.
MFA ensures the user produces more than just a password to access their accounts. This is because passwords can be easily stolen or decoded. Thus, the user is required to provide two or more verification factors before they can access their accounts. Multi-factor authentication is usually a combination of what the user knows (password), what they have (a device) and who they are (biometric).
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API security:
Application programming interface (API) security means preventing your APIs from being attacked. An API is a code that facilitates communication and interaction between two software components. APIs are crucial to programming web-based interactions. They transfer confidential data. That’s why they’re targets for malicious attacks.
Fraud detection APIs keep intruders away. To boost your API security, execute techniques like API keys, token-based authorization and OAuth. Also, ensure you use APIs carefully, encrypt data, accredit input data and implement rate limiting. Finally, put measures in place to ensure that non-authorized persons or apps do not have access to certain API endpoints.
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Blockchain technology:
Blockchain is an emerging technology that holds great promise for secure transaction processing and data management. This is due to its decentralization and transparency nature. Although it was initially developed to facilitate cryptocurrencies, it has shown potential for website security.
The immutability of data, which simply means data being untouchable, is one of the characteristics that make blockchain a good choice for website security. In blockchain, data cannot be changed, it remains the same way, making it free from deletion and unauthorized alterations.
In addition, blockchain websites are more secure as data is distributed across node networks. This is different from existing web services that depend on centralized servers, increasing their risk of exposure to malicious attacks and single points of failure.
Blockchain technology also helps with the authentication of users and access control. This happens with a decentralized identity system. When users have only one secure online identity controlled by them, it would limit the occurrence of unauthorized access and identity theft.
Some of these trends and technologies are already being fully implemented by organizations. If you’ve not started executing any of them, now is the time to start. Others, like the blockchain technology, are still unfolding. It’s best to stay abreast of the trends to fully take advantage of these technologies as they emerge.
Cyber attacks that affect website security
Now that you know the top emerging technologies and trends in website security, how about you get familiar with some of the cybersecurity threats these technologies protect your website from?
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Malware:
Malware is short for ‘malicious software’. It refers to any program or file that is intentionally created to disrupt and endanger computers, networks and servers. Malware has many faces and can be in the form of ransomware, trojans, viruses, spyware, worms, adware, etc.
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SQL injections:
SQL injections (SQLi) have one main job – to gain unauthorized access to your website’s database. SQL attackers take advantage of loopholes and vulnerabilities in your web operations and inject these SQL codes, often disguised as user inputs. This invasion allows these attackers to extract and manipulate sensitive data.
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Phishing attacks:
Phishing is an engineered attack by cybercriminals to steal sensitive information like credit card numbers, usernames, passwords and bank account information. Phishing attacks take the form of deceptive emails, messages, links and attachments. These attacks are used to gain access to login details, steal identities and financial data, commit fraud and distribute malware.
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Man-in-the-Middle attacks:
This attack involves a cyber criminal standing in between two parties, eavesdropping and impersonating either or both of them. The aim of the perpetrator is to alter the victims’ communication and data exchanges, accessing sensitive information and using such data to perform malicious activities like hacking or unauthorized purchases.
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Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks:
DDoS is a form of cybercrime in which the attacker disrupts a website’s normal traffic and floods its server with a large volume of traffic. This act is to stop legitimate users from accessing the website. DDoS leads to server breakdown and financial loss and places excessive stress on a company’s IT unit.
There you have it. These are the top 5 cyber attacks you should be wary of. However, there are still many other dangers your website is exposed to. Cyber criminals are not giving up; they’re getting more vicious and sophisticated by the day. That’s why emerging trends and technologies are needed to combat these menaces.
Stay safe online with emerging web security trends and technologies
The integrity of your business website is as important as the business itself. When the integrity of your website is compromised, a lot of issues arise. The impact can range from minor to severe and devastating. However, the actions you take are what determine if your business survives the hit or not.
The good news is that there are now solutions that can make your website out of bounds to internet crooks. They include banking fraud detection software, biometric authentication, multi-factor authentication, application programming interface (API) security and blockchain technology.
These technologies and trends help you prevent cyber attacks like malware, SQL injections, phishing attacks, man-in-the-middle and distributed denial of service attacks. Much as we want the digital space to be free, unfortunately, it isn’t. To stay safe on the internet, ensure you leverage innovative solutions and tools.