A Few Useful Insights into Online Payment Fraud

Financially-focused cyberthreats are no joke, especially considering how digital payments now make up 41.8% of all payments made worldwide. Let’s consider a few statistics that highlight how important it is to ensure that the payment card data your business collects is sufficiently protected.

Digital Payments are Twice as Common as Credit Card Payments

On a global scale, mobile wallets are used at just about double the rate as card payments are today—and while this means that a vast number of people have already embraced the benefits of these modernized payment options, this by no means is to say that it is a flawless system. 

In fact, keeping pace with the adoption of digital payments has been the number of data compromises, with the victim’s full name, Social Security number, and date of birth being the most commonly breached personally identifiable information. Others follow closely behind, like the victim’s current home address, medical history, and driver’s license coming next.

According to the Data, the Usual Cybercrime Suspects are On the Rise

With a few exceptions, most forms of cyberattacks and vulnerabilities have either remained constant or have actually decreased in the past few years, save for the big three cyberattack vectors: phishing, ransomware, and malware. Between 2019 and 2021, all three of these attack vectors saw large upticks in their use.

Again, most (not all, but most) other attack vectors either remained somewhat constant or actually decreased in use during the same period of time, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center.

Meanwhile—and this may be the most concerning statistic for your customers—the most commonly stolen information in 2021 was apparently someone’s full name (in 1,803 breaches and exposures), their full Social Security number (in 1,136), and their date of birth (688). That’s the identity theft trifecta right there—and again, it isn’t as though other forms of PII were that far behind.

Data is a Precious Resource—Let Us Help You Protect It

Your business really does live and die by its data, in all its types and forms. We’re here to help you keep it safe so your operations can continue unhindered by issues of any kind. Give us a call to learn more about our managed services and our security services today at (978) 912-7006.