While age verification has been a global issue in the e-commerce space for many years, it is now gaining additional attention with the surge of online retailers selling e-cigarette products, online betting services, mature video games, pornography, and cannabis, and new government legislation. A commonly used method for online age verification employed around the world is “age gates.” Age gates typically take the form of a field that asks the prospective customer to enter their birth date or simply agree they are over the required age in order to proceed into the website proper. […] “Age gates,” or the most commonly employed verification method to ensure a customer is of the appropriate age to view or purchase a product, are nothing new to the internet. They are intended to be a digital barrier to prevent under-aged individuals from gaining access to age-restricted commodities and services. With the growing popularity of e-commerce, age gates are being implemented much more by websites selling vaping products, online betting platforms, pornography, and cannabis. However, their effectiveness has always been questionable at best. […] Delivering a satisfying online customer experience is critical for any organization with a web presence. A big part of this is trust. Most customers will shy away from a website or app that does not appear trustworthy. When the issue of identity theft occurs, banking inconsistencies and credit scores are what most frequently come to mind. While these are concerns that are universally associated with adults, children may also be victims of identity theft. Most children don’t have bank accounts or credit cards or any real financial footprint to speak of – and that’s exactly the point. A child’s identity provides a fraudster with a real identity with nothing on the books to cross-reference. […] Avoiding “Catfishing” and Similar Online Scams With Layered Identification The relative anonymity of the internet has given rise to a slew of new types of fraud by consumers including the deceptive practice of “catfishing”. Catfishing is the act of pretending online to be someone different from who you really are. Catfishing goes beyond simply giving […] The internet is rapidly changing how businesses interact with their customers and vice-versa. Businesses have been quick to realize the potential that the interconnectivity of the digital space provides, especially in industries such as e-commerce, finance, and social media. Customers are also quick to take advantage of the newfound convenience of online shopping from the comfort of their living rooms. […] Businesses in general cannot function without the trust of their customers. Customers will not trust a company that doesn’t keep them safe in the capacity in which they interact. This is especially true for many “digital economy” and similar online businesses. Whether the online business matches buyers and vendors (such as ridesharing, home sharing, contractor finders, freelancer finders, or the like), or matches like-minded people together […] Websites that ask customers to enter their birth date or check a box to verify their age – also known as “age gates” — have been around for decades now. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is designed to protect the information of natural persons who are in the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA), including citizens and residents of those countries and even visitors in those countries. The GDPR went into effect on May 25, 2018. Although there are many facets of the GDPR, this article focuses on the “Right to Be Forgotten”, the “Right to Access” one’s own personal information, and the “Right to Correct” that information, as well as the obligations of businesses to verify that persons exercising these rights are who they claim to be. […] If you have customers in California, you are probably familiar with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) that went into effect on January 1, 2020. Because the state is a market comprised of nearly 40 million people, many businesses are choosing to comply even if they do not yet have customers in California. The CCPA is designed to help better protect the digital collection, storage, and dispersal of personal consumer information. This article provides a quick overview, and focuses on the “reasonable verification” requirement when a California consumer exercises their new “Right to Know” or “Right to Be Forgotten”. […] Most applications require a username and password to be able to log in and use the app. This is called “Single Factor Authentication” or “SFA” because it only requires a person to have the username and password in order to sign in. However, “Multi-Factor Authentication” or “MFA” requires more than just a username or password to unlock. This adds an additional layer of security compared to usernames and passwords, which can more easily be breached and hacked. […] Companies have to verify their customer’s identities for various reasons. For example, in order to prevent fraud, e-commerce companies often want to verify their customers before processing orders, and in some cases this is required. We are often asked by online companies for some piece of personal information with which to later identify us. “Mother’s maiden name” is one of those questions often asked. Most people hardly hesitate to give out this information in an expectation that no one could do anything with that piece of data. Additional questions may include: favorite musician, high school mascot, favorite food, where you met your spouse, the name of the street where you grew up, or the like. […] The march towards nationwide legalization of cannabis has ramped up considerably in the past few years. In the U.S. currently, 33 states and the District of Columbia have legalized pot in some form. In fact, 11 states along with Washington D.C. have legalized marijuana even for non-medicinal purposes. Although many celebrate this shift in dynamic, it has shed light on some problems that must be addressed to keep the legal sale of cannabis safe and regulated […] WordPress Single Sign On and WooCommerce SSO Tutorial PART A. What is SSO? an Intro to SSO and the Konfirmi Widget An Intro to Single Sign On Login and SSO Providers Konfirmi offers easy customer authentication using many verification methods such as Single Sign On, Multi-Factor Authentication (text/SMS/email verification), age verification (KBA), address verification, facial […]Age Verification in International E-Commerce
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This is why every organization should be taking the right steps to protect its customers’ personal information during online transactions. Getting a customer to trust you today means they will do business with you tomorrow. […]Confirming Customers’ ID to Prevent Child Identity Theft
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With an age gate, a visitor to such a site is asked to put in their date of birth or otherwise represent their age before entering an age-restricted site or purchasing a product. Nothing is done to check the information provided by the website visitor. They often serve as the only barrier to content and purchases that have legal age limitations.How to Comply with the GDPR’s Identity Verification Requirements
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Many businesses will soon have to “reasonably verify” California customers before complying with a request for a copy of their personal information held by the business, or to delete their information. […]What is My Mother’s Maiden Name? “Meatball”
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