The Internet has provided opportunities for merchants who choose to sell online. However, since there is no direct customer interaction with online sales, there is also an increased risk of fraud. Merchants who sell online don't have the luxury of manually inspecting each credit card as they would in-store. This is why online merchants must take additional steps to validate each transaction and reduce the risk of fraud.
Instructions
1. When a customer makes a purchase, don't begin to process the transaction until you have all of her information.
2. Require the customer to give you the credit card number, expiration date, phone number, email address, card security code (known variously as CVV, CV2 or CVVC) and billing address to further verify their information.
3. Use an internet payment gateway, such as Payfuse, that uses an Address Verification System (AVS), such as the VISA Address Verification System, which helps prevent fraud by automatically comparing the billing address provided by the customer with the address associated with the credit card.
4. If the billing address does not match the address provided, contact the customer and confirm that they placed the order.
5. Be wary of high-dollar or large orders, multiple transactions with the same card and overseas orders, as they may be at higher risk of fraud. In particular, Ghana, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Romania and Yugoslavia are considered high-risk countries. Low risk countries include France, Italy, Japan, New Zealand and Switzerland. When in doubt, call the customer to verify the purchase.
