There’s no denying the incredible impact that technology has had on the world, especially when it comes to the digital goods industry. By digital goods, we mean the $2.3 trillion that is spent every year on online goods, such as coupon codes, e-vouchers, eBooks, store credits, online subscriptions and other services that exist in the digital world.

However, just like their material counterparts, as the industry balloons, so does the level of fraud. But why are fraudsters, hackers, and criminals so attracted to stealing and digital goods and services? Why target these relatively non-tangible assets from companies, and is there really anything to gain?

Today, we’re going to explore everything you need to know.

Attacking the Services Themselves

The first way that fraudsters are targeting digital goods is through the services themselves. For example, if you’re running an online games platform, such as bingo or gambling games, a fraudster could hack or work out the prize-winning algorithm to see when a player is going to win or not.

This, of course, then means the hacker can influence the system to win the maximum number of times. A skilled hacker may even be able to subtly change the win rate of themselves, causing them to win a huge amount of money.

Attacking the Customers

Perhaps more commonly, hackers and fraudsters will be much more drawn to stealing money from the customers of these digital services, and this will take place in a number of ways. For example, stealing accounts, taking card information and then selling the accounts to others is big business, especially those of online games where players spend money in the game for certain features.

Even the ever-popular Epic Games, the developer of global-renowned Fortnite, witnesses over hundreds of fraud attempts on player accounts daily, and there’s no way of knowing how many of these are successful.

The other way people are being scammed is via fake products. For example, a fraudster could easily put a $100 gift card online stating they no longer need it and will sell it for $80. However, if the gift card is fake, you’ll be spending $80 on nothing.

Protecting Your Business from Fraud

As you can see, it’s so important for online businesses dealing with digital goods to be mindful of the dangers and to protect themselves. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways you can do this. Start by making sure all your connections and web pages, especially login pages, are encrypted end-to-end to stop hackers.

Then, make sure you’re offering your digital goods on your website and your website only. Tell users that the only way they can make sure they’re not being ripped off is from buying directly from you and avoiding third-party websites and services.

You can also use other online technology to catch fraudulent IDs using Jumio’s Netverify service that can help to identify fraudulent logins to your website, platform or online services. You need to make sure you’re giving your customers the best experiences.

Summary

Protecting your customers and giving them the best experience when interacting with your online goods is so important, and there’s a huge amount of trust that can be lost if things go wrong. Make sure you’re stay educated with the latest dangers and securing your business.

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