How to Keep Your Online Business Safe, Secure and Legally Protected
During the Covid-19 crisis, many businesses are keeping the wheels turning by moving their business online. This week we discuss how companies’ do this, and also what risk and transaction management strategies can be used to keep business safe and secure.
Shifting Online: General Tips and Practices
The digital economy has allowed a great deal of work and trade to continue online. For example, the proliferation of WhatsApp allows many people to order deliveries, supplies and other services through text messaging. Now payments can also be made online, or directly to your phone. You can also arrange work meetings through apps such as Zoom and Skype. Google makes it very easy to share information and data within your company.
When shifting your business online, make sure you maintain the right type of legal documentation. This could be in the form of clear invoices for purchases, and publishing terms and conditions for user facing platforms. In addition, you can memorialize meeting minutes via email, to make sure everyone in your team is on the same page.
For those who are building or have built full fledged websites or social media accounts to handle online customer traffic, it is essential to include clear terms and conditions on your access page, to prevent buyer confusion or disputes down the line. You can’t provide an in person receipt, or engage in an in person discussion when selling online. Your client or customer may also receive the complete delivery only days or weeks after the purchase is completed. Therefore, you need to be proactive in clarifying terms and conditions, as well as practices for resolving order issues when selling online. This is essential to sustainable long term selling practices online. The terms and conditions of your business should lay this out clearly, and ensure that your business is well structured and prepared to deal with uncertainty, efficiently.
When things are chaotic, a failure to stay organized and maintain Contracting practices can lead to detrimental liabilities. What if your customer doesn't pay on time? What if the customer claims that you delivered the wrong good or service? What if your team members ignore your verbal instructions? What if your micromanaging boss tries to pin something negative on you in an office place power play? Having the right legal and compliance framework can go a long way towards preventing all this!
Avoiding Fraud and Online Theft
As your business goes online, one risk that is almost unavoidable is the risk of ONLINE FRAUD and THEFT of your personal data or financial information. In the last month, our team has handled a multitude of matters related to hacked accounts, stolen credit cards and stolen information.
There are a number of tricks fraudsters can use to access account data. For example, a fraudulent customer may make an order with a credit card then request a refund, to collect the cash in their account. Hackers can also access your saved information via certain websites, and can then steal your credit card details for use later on. If you think this is a remote possibility, then consider the fact that major companies' such as Amazon and the Marriot (even as recently as the last month) have been hacked! Finally, email accounts and domain ownership can also be hacked, and held at ransom.
You should know which number to call when you cancel your cards, and save a minimal amount of financial info online. Also, make sure you know the terms and conditions for your email or domain host. Check the registry for your domain and make sure any email or domains owned by your business are owned in your own personal name, or in the exact name of a business!
Downloading good anti-malware and anti-virus software is also very important. Avast and Malware Bites are two good and relatively inexpensive programs which help detect harmful programs and files stored in your computer, that could be used to steal your information. Sometimes you may also have unwanted programs which are tracking your information, in order to bombard you with ads later on. This kind of unwanted software/file storage (malware) can also slow down your computer and cause other issues with your work and computer performance.
Finally, maintaining good internet hygiene is also important. Browsing secure and reputable sites, and avoiding downloads of unsafe, unsecure, or unnecessary content, such as movies, tv shows or other kinds of content, on a work computer, is crucial. Don’t address spam or suspicious emails (it’s too risky, just delete it), and keep your IT use purely professional on work devices. This will limit your exposure to harmful programs and internet theft.
For any assistance setting up your digital business, or managing risks/transactions associated with your e-commerce business, contact us at info@borderlesscounsel.com.