Currently, most ecommerce companies depend on SaaS solutions for working, data storage, and improving customers’ experiences. SaaS being flexible and easily scalable is an advantage it brings but the disadvantage is that many doors will be opened to new threats.
These threats are very dangerous and can lead to loss of data and money. It’s important that businesses remain alert and safe in their online stores.
In this article, the most recent and emerging threats in the world of ecommerce SaaS solutions as well as trends for protecting business assets will be discussed.
What Is a SaaS Environment?
It’s always useful to ask ‘what is a SaaS environment?’ before getting into more detail about the threats it can face.
A SaaS environment is defined as the realm of the services that are delivered through cloud infrastructure and which assists companies in the handling of organizational processes.
These environments are created and reside on the provided server and are accessible through the internet. Specifically, in an ecommerce scenario, SaaS may consist of applications such as stock management, payment processing and control, relation with customers, and even managing campaigns.
The integration of these applications is clear and hence favorable towards the scaling of a business as uptake of changes in the market is enhanced. However, it also means that the security of the whole ecosystem is in each application and its functionality.
Understanding SaaS Threats in Ecommerce
SaaS has had a very profound effect on the way most ecommerce businesses are run. That way businesses will not have to worry about the technical aspects of software, which have already been outsourced and are being hosted and managed.
But this is where some certain dangers emerge. Some threats in the SaaS model of ecommerce can be complex and focus on different aspects of an ecommerce store, such as customer information and the payment system.
The nature of SaaS threats is different for ecommerce businesses as compared to other types of businesses. While traditional software companies have their security measures, SaaS platforms leave security to third-party contractors.
This dependency can cause weaknesses especially where the provider in question has poor measures in place on security. Furthermore, most SaaS platforms are interrelated where a violation in one program can easily affect the others, and amplify the problem.
Latest Ecommerce SaaS Threats
Like any business that’s embraced by technology, there are new threats that come with the advancement of technology to ecommerce businesses.
More recently, several new and highly developed threats have appeared, most of which are directed at the SaaS platforms ecommerce companies use. These include amongst others, supply chain threats, While the occasional phishing threat can be kept to a minimum, the other threats quickly get out of hand.
In these attacks, the attackers use several vulnerabilities in an organization’s supply chain to navigate and compromise the SaaS system. As soon as an attacker gets inside the network, they can also move horizontally, and gain access to sensitive information and cause damage.
In the same manner, the effects of these attacks present themselves in such a way that an individual only realizes he’s under the attack once the damage is already colossal. Credential stuffing is yet another emerging issue in the ecommerce SaaS environment.
This attack is where an attacker uses wrong credentials to infiltrate accounts which they have hacked or which the credentials have been stealing or leaked. This is more so given that most people use the same passwords on different accounts, thus making it easy for hackers to penetrate ecommerce systems.
Having gained access, they can rob customers’ data, perform unauthorized purchases, and even deny the business access to its own accounts. Phishing attacks have also changed over the years and they are even more sophisticated now.
In the more recent past, the insiders used sophisticated social engineering tactics to get the employees to give them access to parts of the SaaS landscape that were restricted. These attacks can be particularly deleterious in the ecommerce environment in which the customer’s confidence is essential.
Protecting SaaS-Based Ecommerce Platforms
In light of the kind of threats that are prevalent in SaaS environments, businesses operating in the ecommerce space need to be proactive. No system can be 100% safe, but businesses can take the following steps in order to reduce the risks as much as possible.
Perhaps the most valuable of the many activities is to ensure that every SaaS application that a business uses has MFA in place. MFA makes it harder to compromise any account because the system demands two or more forms of identification before granting access.
This can greatly minimize the possibility of unauthorized access or even to account credentials that have been stolen. Updates are also needed as is the assessment of the security from time to time.
Most of the SaaS providers release patches, as well as updates, in order to attend to new vulnerabilities. Keeping an eye on such updates, and regularly revisiting the state of SaaS security, one can mitigate these risks before they set in.
Employees should also be educated on new threats that are in the market and the best practices to avoid falling prey to them. This is critical, since human factors are still a dominant cause of security incidents. Teams should be aware of the risk and how to deal with it.
The Role of SaaS Security Solutions
Aside from in-house security technologies, it makes sense for ecommerce businesses to embark on specialized SaaS security solutions. These solutions are intended to prevent against the type of new threats now prevalent in SaaS applications environments.
For instance, the Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASBs) can assist organizations to review and manage access to SaaS apps. In terms of security enforcement, they act as a control point for the SaaS applications, providing access to the data only by permitted users.
Another useful solution is the implementation of the zero-trust security frameworks. Unlike other security models that used trust inside the network, zero trust demands mutual authentication of every user and device at all times and at any location.
This strategy can be most valuable for organizations that employ several SaaS applications, as it dramatically reduces the chance of the attacker moving from one application to another.
Guarding the Digital Fort
Based on the existing importance of SaaS platforms in supporting ecommerce businesses, it’s important to ensure adequate security measures are in place. This ensures safety of the business.
Threats are very much real, and the consequences from threats are catastrophic. Nevertheless, by having the risks identified, strengthening a business’s security, and investing in unique solutions, the business can safeguard its assets and maintain the prosperity of their online stores.
