Facilitating sales online is hugely beneficial for wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers. However, doing so requires high levels of data security, and many of these firms have less experience in e-commerce than their B2C counterparts. We spoke to Arno Ham, CPO at Sana Commerce, for expertise on how Sana delivers B2B e-commerce solutions via Microsoft Dynamics and SAP safely and securely.
What do businesses need to consider to keep their client and company data secure when creating an online retail presence?
“A secure online environment relies on the protection of your internet connection, the application and the source code itself. In terms of source code, there are certain pros and cons when it comes to choosing open source or closed source software. You need to pick the one that best suits your company.
“As the name suggests, open source code is open code that programmers and developers are willing to share and is easy to manipulate for the business owners’ in-house needs, for everyone to review – meaning it’s more susceptible to potential threats and vulnerabilities are discovered faster. This could, however, include cyber criminals; accessing masses of sensitive information on a successful break-in. Closed source software, conversely, is code that developers and programmers do not share which makes it less flexible to the user to manipulate.
“Of course, without a community constantly checking the software, vulnerabilities may slip through the gaps. Hybrid eCommerce systems can enforce restrictions on open source code so it is only shared with selected partners or clients. This allows the private community to carry out checks without hackers watching”.
In terms of software, how can you keep your data secure?
“There are a number of measures you should take to ensure the safe use of your ERP data in your eCommerce store: firewalls keep unwanted users and viruses out. Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS) use encryption to ensure data traffic between the web server and browser remains private.
“A Virtual Private Network (VPN) provides users with secure access, protecting online data the same as a firewall protects local data on your computer. IP restriction means you can only log in from a previously specified IP address so hackers in remote locations can’t get in. As an added layer of security, a demilitarised zone (DMZ) monitors what type of data can access the ERP system from external servers”.
How can you protect your internet connection?
“A cloud-based ERP platform will have completely different security than one that is located on-premises, so you need to know where your ERP system is physically located. You also need to pay close attention to your internet connection — any transferral of data and content needs to be properly protected at all times. As an added precaution, you should look to having your store application audited by an external party every six months or so.”
Synergy Technology can get you started with setting up your e-commerce site, integrated with Dynamics NAV.
Contact Synergy Technology on 0345 456 0050.
What can a business that uses ERP integrated eCommerce expect to gain?
“Integrating your eCommerce system with your ERP platform can future-proof your business. End-users can focus on improving the customer experience, streamlining sales processes and increasing sales volume instead of worrying about data security. It’s worth mentioning that interfaced e-commerce platforms copy sensitive information like customer prices from the ERP system to the e-commerce software. This presents an additional risk because such data also needs to be protected outside the ERP system. However, I think the benefits that come with a fully integrated e-commerce system make this additional step well worth it.”
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How can you protect your internet connection?
“A cloud-based ERP platform will have completely different security than one that is located on-premises, so you need to know where your ERP system is physically located. You also need to pay close attention to your internet connection – any transferral of data and content needs to be properly protected at all times.
“As an added precaution, you should look to having your store application audited by an external party every six months or so”.
What can a business that uses ERP integrated e-commerce expect to gain?
“Integrating your e-commerce system with your ERP platform can future-proof your business. End-users can focus on improving the customer experience, streamlining sales processes and increasing sales volume instead of worrying about the security of their data.
“It’s worth mentioning that interfaced e-commerce platforms copy sensitive information like customer prices from the ERP system to the e-commerce software. This presents an additional risk because such data also needs to be protected outside the ERP system. However, I think the benefits that come with a fully integrated e-commerce system make this additional step well worth it”.
With the implementation of GDPR in May 2018, data security will be even more pertinent to selling online. Discover how to set up a secure web store using SANA and integrate it with your ERP software and ensure your customer data is protected. Get in contact with Synergy Technology today on 0345 456 0050.
Many thanks to Arno Ham, the CPO at Sana Commerce for his contribution to this article.