Growth in e-Commerce Fuels Development of Mobile Security Solutions

Global e-commerce is alive and well—and unfortunately for retailers, so are fraudsters in search of nefarious opportunities to separate people from their money, not to mention their sense of security. Fortunately, the “good guys” at digital security companies are working hard to help merchants and customers (and their digital devices) stay ahead of danger.

The Juniper Research report, ‘Online Payment Fraud: Key Vertical Strategies and Management 2016-2020, revealed that the marketplace will see a proliferation of online fraud detection solutions, leading annual spending in the space to grow by 30%–reaching $9.2 billion—by 2020. The report finds that leading fraud detection and prevention solution vendors (e.g. CyberSource, Experian, and FICO) are capable of lowering fraud levels down to less than 0.1% of transaction values in some key eCommerce verticals.

Zeroing In On the Mobile Channel

In their white paper, Managing the Risk of Fraud, Juniper revealed that the three primary destinations for online fraud are e-retail (65% of fraud by value), online banking (27%), and airline ticketing (6%). Yet, mobile devices are becoming more popular for making online purchases, making the mobile channel a more desirable target for fraudsters.

Criminals have been targeting mobile payment channels in particular because they’re more vulnerable compared to more traditional channels, such as online over a desktop computer. Mobile payment technology is in relative infancy—functionalities and apps are being created and developers are still dealing with fixing “bugs” and security issues. Companies don’t have access—yet—to the same level of sophisticated (i.e. market-tested) security measures to help protect their systems and transactions.

Juniper suggests that the focus on improving mobile payment security will lead to innovations in data analytics, cross-channel fraud monitoring, and the use of global threat intelligence networks. What’s more, it will drive the further development of advanced biometric authentication technologies. This point is validated in a new Research and Markets report finding that over 120 million customers around the world are using mobile biometrics on a daily basis, and “the theme is set to continue and accelerate.” For more insights, see Biometrics in Payments: Pleasing Consumers while Fighting Fraud.

Business-to-Business Purchases “Go Mobile”

In B2B commerce, more companies are “going mobile” at an increasing rate in order to meet the needs of decision-makers’ preferences and work styles. The Power of Mobile in B2B Commerce on EBMonline.com points out that some B2B companies are becoming “mobile-first” because the workplace has expanded from the office and Google search has gone mobile. And for many, online searches lead to purchases: a recent Google/Millward Brown Digital survey shows 91% growth in researchers using mobile devices in every stage of the B2B purchase path.

Surely, there is generational pressure helping to hasten companies’ B2B mobile shopping capabilities. Gartner research shows that 50% of all B2B buyers are millennials—and that percentage will keep increasing as members of this generation advance into decision-making roles. What’s more, according to Business2Community.com, one of the 4 Key Ways the B2B eCommerce Market is Maturing is that software is being designed specifically to meet Millennial demand. Read Millennials Drive B2B eProcurement Adoption to explore this generational shift.

Like the consumer marketplace, the business community will continue to require better and better mobile payments security as the channel grows—and there’s almost no stopping it. In the not-so-distant future, enabling B2B ecommerce mobile payments will become a competitive necessity—if it’s not already, in some industries—and the capabilities and related security measures adopted to ensure success are going to impact payments outside of the ecommerce realm.

For more on B2B mobile payments tech, explore:

3 Ways Mobile Technology Enhances the B2B Payments Experience

Exploring the Consumer-led Transformation of Corporate Mobile Payment Technology

4 Reasons Why The Digitization of Payments is Imminent