It’s vital that your POS system is secure because it’s connected to many systems that contain valuable data you cannot afford to lose. When not secured, a host of problems can occur. For instance, confidential data about your business transactions may be leaked. This can result in the loss of credibility of your brand and regulatory fines as well. Data loss or data modification can be another problem when your POS system isn’t secure. You won’t be able to make the right decision when the data you’re referring to is wrong. On top of that, there are many vulnerabilities attached to the point of sale system.

Tips To Help You Secure Your POS System

The following are six tips that can help you keep your POS system secure.

Security Audits

You must perform regular security audits on every single resource that’s linked to your company. For example, all the computers, routers, POS systems, and servers should be audited on a regular basis. In order to make it easier for you, you might want to list down all the resources that are used and all the devices that your business uses. You should also think about and write down the threats that there can be.

Writing down resources and potential threats can help with the audit.

Antivirus Protection

You should invest in antivirus protection of your POS system. While you may be tempted to use antivirus that’s built into the system already, it’s wise to invest in strong and effective antivirus protection. You want to opt for solutions that offer the greatest security to your systems so that every transaction is secure and fraudulent activity is detected instantly without delay. This is particularly true for those businesses that depend on loads of IT resources they have. Even if you don’t, experts still recommend you to opt for a robust antivirus protection solution.

Password Policy

You should have a strict password policy in place so that your employees are creating and using passwords that are easy to remember but are tough to get hacked. This is easier said than done because people who don’t remember will write it somewhere and this can fall in the wrong hands. Moreover, if the password is simple, hackers can easily get access to it. You should have a password policy that ensures your employees change passwords frequently.

Password Change

The easiest measure you can adopt in order to secure your POS system is to ensure that the passwords are changed on a regular basis. You want to keep in mind that the computers in the network and the resources that are shared should be protected with a password. And these are the passwords that should be changed regularly. If you have a lot of staff then it becomes all the more important to change as soon as an employee either leaves your business or is let go from the job.

Rethink Privileges

You should be aware of which member of your staff has what privileges. For example, you cannot make the mistake of giving complete admin privileges to every single person working for you. This may cause a lot of confusion. You should always protect the system and give employees access to only those permissions they need to carry out their respective jobs.

Regular Updates

You want to ensure your POS system is updated on a regular basis. Both your software and hardware should be updated so that you’re secure from potential risks as well. Developers do provide updates that help you stay secure. However, it’s your job to ensure those updates are applied so that you’re secure and so is your entire system. You should stay away from continuing to use obsolete software because those don’t provide updates and you’re at a higher risk that way. Investing in the best software and hardware is immensely vital.

A secure POS system is at the basis of ensuring you are safe from hacker attacks. You want to ensure every transaction is secure and customers can pay safely. An example of a highly secure POS system is Shopify’s POS which is Level 1 PCI DSS compliant.

Shopify’s POS is Level 1 PCI DSS compliant.

This is the security level used by banks. When you use Shopify POS you know that maximum base protection is being provided to you. As soon as you switch to Shopify you become PCI compliant too because all the online stores that are already powered by Shopify are PCI compliant automatically.