9 best practices for offering online payments in your hotel

‍3D Secure

3D Secure is a protocol developed in the early 2000s, and updated in 2017. It effectively authenticates the issuer, optimizes the security of payments on the Internet and protects consumers. It also protects your hotel from fraud by preventing payments by customers not authorized to use the means of payment.

This protocol concerns transactions made by bank card, whether debit card or credit card. The 3D Secure protocol allows you to be certain that the buyer is indeed the owner of the issuing card.

Two-factor authentication (2FA)

In order to secure online payments, two-factor authentication is very interesting. This technique, also called two-step verification, consists of strengthening the protection of the account by adding a second means of identification, which can be:

• Sending a unique code by SMS;
• The use of a cryptographic key or security key;
• Sending a code that can be used for a limited period (TOTP: time-based one-time password);
• The use of an authentication application;
• The use of facial, voice or fingerprint recognition.

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This means that when a guest books a room at your hotel, they should receive a text message with a one-time password, or use another means to identify themselves. To protect yourself against fraudulent customers, you will have understood that two-factor authorization is a great ally!

Use secure passwords for your website

To prevent hackers from accessing your confidential data, you must secure your passwords. Avoid birthdays or simple passwords like 1234 or 0000. Use special characters, letters and numbers, which are more difficult to hack. When your customers make their reservation online with your tool, make sure that they also choose secure passwords, or that they change them regularly.

Train your team on data protection

To secure online payment processes, train your team on best practices. It must be able to handle security issues at all times. Give your employees the necessary tools to understand the different payment processes (VAD, gateways, all-in-one payment systems, etc.): from then on, they will be better able to identify fraud attempts and avoid them.

PCI-DSS certification

Payment card data is subject to special attention because of its sensitive nature and the numerous risks of fraud. Level 1 PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) certification provides banking organizations and users of online services with a high level of security. The actors who handle this confidential data meet high security requirements, which are defined by this certification. There are different levels of certification, which depend in particular on the number of transactions carried out by your hotel, the type of bank card accepted, the acquiring banks, or the complexity of the electronic payment infrastructure.

Limit access to different payment systems

Access your sensitive data only from your hotel's IP address, and from your establishment's smartphones, and make sure that they are perfectly secure (with strong passwords). Limit access from other computers, tablets and smartphones as much as possible.

SSL 

SSL (Secure Socket Layer) allows you to create a secure channel between two machines that communicate over the Internet or an internal network. To protect your payment data, it is an essential tool to integrate on your website, which ensures that the data is encrypted.

On websites that have SSL, there is a small closed padlock next to the URL. Also, the address starts with https:// and not http://.

End-to-end encryption

End-to-end encryption allows you to encrypt sensitive data. It prevents third parties from accessing this information. It only takes a few milliseconds for the information to flow between the payment terminal and the acquirer. The solution identifies sensitive card information before encrypting it. Sensitive account data is protected as soon as the payment card is presented to the payment terminal, until it reaches the acquirer.

Choose a secure reservation module

To protect online payments in the hotel industry, be sure to opt for a secure reservation system that meets all these requirements. Your customers must be able to book and pay for their room with complete confidence in you. Their data must be protected from reservation to check out: to strengthen customer satisfaction, and your brand image, it is essential!