February 12, 2015 - Following the recent partnership between PayPal and Shell which will see shell become the first fuels retailer in the UK to offer a mobile payment solution at pumps nationwide, Tom Lysemose Hansen, CEO and founder of app security specialist Promon says that many industries that are moving into mobile payments need to think more carefully than ever about how they protect customer data.
"It is always refreshing to see a shift in the market to embrace the latest technology but with this change comes new avenues that need protecting. Companies looking to gain a competitive edge over their rivals may be putting customer details at risk by not employing the right type of security in the push to keep up with the shift toward mobile payment enabled applications"
"In recent times we've seen a surge in mobile payments and not only this, we have seen an array of partnerships that allow retailers to integrate payments technology into their own apps. Companies have taken steps to capitalise on this growth by enabling their own applications to take payments. In this rush to gain the market advantage it is important that the necessary steps are taken to ensure their apps are self-defending against rising malware attacks."
"As it currently stands, the majority have security measures in place only to address and fix attacks once they have already occurred, which means the customer's details have already been compromised. We've seen this happen in several high-profile cases over the past twelve months and its capacity to cause damage to company reputations should not be underestimated," Tom continued.
Tom said: "What firms require is a proactive solution designed to stop malware attacks before they do any harm, without changing the customer experience. A successful strategy will focus on the vulnerabilities rather than threats and is therefore able to ensure a safe mobile banking experience, even on devices that have been compromised."
"The mobile payments sector is one which needs to be treated with extra caution when it comes to handling consumer data. The consequences of identity theft can be hugely distressing for consumers and companies need to take action to make sure that any security put in place is preventative rather than reactive. Firms must now make defending security apps a priority to limit the damage for consumers, but also the reputational damage for companies bringing their new products to market and looking to embrace the latest technology to sell their products," Tom concluded.
