Cryptocurrency For Ecommerce – What You Should Know

Bitcoin Payments on websites

A growing number of companies in a variety of industries are using cryptocurrencies, allowing some customers a more convinient way to pay for their goods and services. While still only a few payment gateways (and even fewer POS terminals) process cryptocurrency payments, we are still a long way from the peak of mainstream adoption. This has never been more obvious than in 2021 and we want to help you get ahead of your competition.

Although Bitcoin (BTC) is the most famous cryptocurrency, there are many other types of digital currencies available under the name Altcoin, a generic term used for all alternatives to Bitcoin. Bitcoin is by far the most popular currency. In simple terms, it is a digital currency that is not controlled by any bank or government, but instead uses sophisticated cryptographic techniques that allow it to be exchanged between users for goods and services.

Despite price volatiliy, large companies like Amazon and Facebook (Meta) are investing time and money to adjust their platforms so that they can pay in these currencies. Major e-commerce platforms like BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and even Shopify already support cryptocurrency payments using crypto wallets like Coinbase, BitPay, GoCoin, and CoinPayments.

How Do Crpytocurrencies Benefit Ecommerce Sites?

Let’s see why you might want to add Bitcoin to your website payment options. Using cryptocurrency payment gateways can help your business expand its consumer base between local and international buyers. By this same logic, existing international retailers/brands that start accepting bitcoin can reach more remote buyers and get established in a growing future-proof marketplace.

Adopting cryptocurrency as a payment method will give you access to a whole new market of tech-savvy consumers who have built a community in the cryptocurrency market. This still applies in 2021, but it won’t last forever. As global brands like Etsy, Starbucks, PayPal and others announce the adoption of cryptocurrencies, other companies are forced to compete and move towards cryptocurrencies. If you’re late to the game accepting cryptocurrency payments you will not find yourself attracting a community of followers. In fact, US merchants integrated with PayPal are already accepting cryptocurrency from consumers, and we think you will be able to accept cryptocurrency from customers in the UK soon. It will not take long to get left behind with the current rate of adoption in crpytocurrencies.

You can also make transactions easier for customers by offering more annonymity. Cryptocurrency allows you to make anonymous purchases using encrypted wallet addresses. Unlike credit or debit card transactions that require multiple fields at checkout, customers use their digital wallets to complete cryptocurrency transactions. This could be beneficial for certain goods and services or even for any retailer in the run up to Christmas.

Getting Started with Cryptocurrencies for Ecommerce

One gateway can provide payment options for over 100 cryptocurrencies. It can be tough getting started, so whether you are an e-commerce seller new to cryptocurrency or are convinced of the idea of ​​cryptocurrency payments and ready to accept them, give us a call on 01775 761512 or contact us online.

Stop Using The Same Password!

Hosting Lincolnshire

Over 500 Million Exposed in Facebook Data Breach

In April 2021, approximately 20% of Facebook’s subscribers were exposed in a data breach. The data was allegedly obtained by exploiting a vulnerability Facebook says they rectified in August 2019. Records contained telephone numbers, email addresses, names, genders, dates of birth, location, relationship status and employer.

Why it Matters

When web hosts are compromised or broken, the data on their servers can be exposed to persons that should not have been able to view it. The regularity of these breaches should be highly concerning for anyone shopping and browsing the web. Unfortunately, many people are unknowingly already compromised. Anyone can help victims learn of their compromised accounts. With data breaches have been rampant in recent years, we encourage everyone to check by using a useful online resource: haveibeenpwned.com

Using the same password?

Businesses rarely change their email address and doing so is often considered bad for business. However, this presents a unique risk to businesses, particularly using the same password across multiple websites and accounts. It might only take a single account to be compromised for them all to be. When you consider the scale of this issue, If you’re a business then also consider the risk to your customers data by extension.

Get Notified If Your Account Gets Compromised

Visit haveibeenpwned.com and use the ‘Notify Me’ function to be made aware of your data being exposed. Use this to eliminate compromised passwords. In addition to this, you must avoid using the same password multiple times.

Our Highest Performance Servers To Date

Upgrade server

We’re introducing a waiting list for our upcoming server upgrades. Clients can change over their existing annual hosting arrangements for an upgraded monthly arrangement on brand-new high-performance servers.

We’ve made some comparisons of single sites on both server specifications and found that the upgraded servers are clocking in at over twice the speed of standard hosting. The cost of owning and managing these systems is substantial so we’re preparing a waiting list to kickstart this service upgrade.

Performance and value are always our priority. The best prices are available from hosting multiple sites. However, the price is not always our client’s priority. If you are ready for a step up in speed and security, then transferring to a high-performance server is the next step you need to take.

How To Upgrade Your Hosting

If you’re interested in this upgrade and would like to be added to the waiting list, please contact us.

Ecommerce – Moving Lincolnshire Magento 1 Sites to Magento 2

magento2 update lincolnshire

Switching to Magento 2

If you’re running an ecommerce website in Lincolnshire, it might be time to check with your hosts that you are future proof. We regularly have new clients in Spalding approach us with older ecommerce systems, unaware that their business and their customers are at risk. If they stay on an old system without receiving security patches, hackers will be more capable of gaining access to the hosting and website. The most prominent example we are seeing now is businesses running on Magento 1 systems. Now is the time to abandon Magento 1. The Magento 1 platform will reach ‘End of Life’ in June 2020. This means that all updates will cease, and your system will be considered expired. We advise you to invest effort in the migration to a newer platform, sooner rather than later.

Whether you’re working from a market town like Spalding or a city like Peterborough, Magento 2 is a costly build for lots of companies and this may be a big barrier to taking the next step. It’s not the only option. Magento is a very good platform but it’s often overkill. There are alternative platforms that offer security and stability long term. If you’re unsure where to look next then give us a call.

We use a variety of systems depending on their intended purpose. This includes using Magento on larger ecommerce sites or scalable sites with larger intentions. The countdown to 2020 can be an opportunity to explore the features, performance and security enhancements provided by the range of future proof platforms, including Magento 2.

For more information on how to get moving, contact us on 01775 761512 or email [email protected]

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Is Someone Reading Your Gmail Emails?

Google Hosting

Unfortunately, most businesses are unaware they may have unknowingly compromised their customers data (and their own). Believe it or not, all of your Gmail messages could be read human third parties. Furthermore, they could be moved, deleted or even sent!

Following the Facebook data controversy, Google has now confirmed that your private emails on the Gmail system can potentially be read by third parties. The third parties are given permission using app access or plugins for the gmail console. People who have used gmail to create accounts or manage apps are at risk of their emails being read by those companies.

Securing Your Emails

It’s important to note, nothing illegal is happening. Permission is given by users without attention given to the small print. It’s a very common problem that’s being exposed more every day.  With 1.4 billion users on gmail it’s likely that this story will unfold further as more people become aware of the risks. 

Here’s what you need to do:

  1. Never allow any apps access to read, send, delete and manage your email. 
  2. Use the Security Check-up tool to assess and secure your account:  https://myaccount.google.com/security-checkup/3

We host emails for many of our clients. If you’re currently using Gmail but would prefer a safer local solution, we would be happy to help. We protect your data at the same high standard that we secure our own. Contact us for more information.

Lincolnshire Hosting – Safety and Security

Hosting Lincolnshire

Our Lincolnshire hosting service is something we are very proud of. A large proportion of our client base is hosted after we have undertaken their initial website development. However, we also offer a full transfer to our servers along with one year of hosting and support for clients that just need a fresh host. 

Website Hosting Transfers in Lincolnshire

Many hosting transfers require some work beyond just moving the website. For a start, we have to do a full security check. Even when we don’t find a threat we still have to implement our high standard of protection to new websites before we can fully integrate them. Ongoing, we also have to ensure system updates are made as fast as possible. One of the main reasons that people transfer their websites to us is because their site has been unsupported, leading to missing updates and patches. We regularly set up auto-updates on new websites to ensure this is resolved immediately. 

Content Updates

Content updates are another common service required by new clients. This is often because they have been ignored by their last host or not given sufficient training. These updates managed as support, included in our standard hosting and support package. 

Fast and Stable Hosting

Speed and stability is another issue. Our hosting is built on FreeBSD, widely regarded as one of the most stable and high performance operating systems of the whole Unix lineage. If you’re interested in how this compares with other industry systems we’ve created some comparisons on our hosting page. 

Loyal, Local and Trusted

We don’t reserve extra space and limit your website potential. We provide a powerful, fully managed service for all of our customers. If you are interested in hearing more about how we can help you with hosting, please feel free to call us on 01775 761512. 

Drive By Websites Ltd is based in Spalding, Lincolnshire. We work with clients all over the county including in Holbeach, Bourne, Grantham, Stamford, Boston, Long Sutton, Lincoln and Sleaford.

SSL Certificates – Safer Websites and Higher Rankings

ssl spalding

After installing hundreds of SSL certificates on websites, we decided it’s probably time we wrote you a blog about them!

An SSL certificate is visible on websites with the padlock next to the web address. These addresses technically start with https:// instead of  http://.

SSL sends encrypted information over the web so only the intended recipient can understand it. It’s most valuable when sending sensitive information, such as payment details over the internet. It also instills a lot of extra trust in customers. 

We can set up your website with a security certificate at a very low cost and with very fast turnaround time. You might feel like it’s unnecessary but technology moves at such a rapid pace and we see it as our job to ensure your website is up to date with these changes.

Your website will suffer without a SSL Certificate. Give us a call on 01775 761512 to discuss setting up an SSL certificate on your website. 

UK Website Design Using Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin Payments on websites

Drive By Websites Ltd is a strong believer that virtual currency payments are the future. The growing trend of Cryptocurrency payments in the UK is just the beginning. We are keen to work with clients on Websites that adopt these capabilities ahead of their competition.

The future of web development is something we often debate in our efforts to ensure that our clients are getting the most ‘future-proof’ development possible. We’ll be the first to admit that many of our clients don’t yet NEED Cryptocurrency payments. But that’s doesn’t mean these services are not immensely valuable to the right businesses. Before virtual currencies are adopted in mainstream society they are very likely to first dominate the web. This is something that businesses can both encourage and be prepared for.

The benefits include cheaper transactions, lower risk, less regulation and getting noticed. We primarily recommend using the most trusted options, such as Bitcoin or Litecoin. However, we can provide a growing number of other currency integrations as well.

New Cryptocurrency Integration Page Launched

If you’re interested in finding out more, we’ve just launched a new page on our website, ‘Cryptocurrency Payments in Website Design‘. We hope this page answers some of your questions about how blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies can enhance your business.

Cryptocurrency Ecommerce Quotes

For a quote or to find out what else we can offer, give us a call on 01775 761512. We offer a fantastic price for new websites that integrate Cryptocurrency payment options.

Ransomware – What You Need To Know

Hosting Lincolnshire

By now, you will likely be hearing a lot about ‘Ransomware’. Here’s what you need to know:

Ransomware is a cyber-attack that results in payment demands in return for access to your data. The malicious software (often included in an email) encrypts your information. They then threaten to block access to the files until a ransom is paid. The cost commonly ranges from £400 to £1,500 in bitcoin. These attacks are mostly waged against businesses, for obvious reasons

  • Back up your files to ensure you don’t lose any data.
  • Don’t open suspicious emails, websites or mobile apps. Hackers use these to transfer malicious software onto your computer or device.
  • Get antivirus protection. Antivirus programs can stop ransomware from being downloaded onto computers by scanning files for ransomware before downloading and scanning existing files.
  • Install updates/Auto update. programs are often updated to fix vulnerabilities that have been exploited to install malicious software. It is best practice to always download the newest version of your software as soon as you can, or enable an auto-update function.