by Source Defense
Don’t Trust Your Online Revenue Channel to Sub-par Solutions for eSkimming Security (Beware the big box “me too” solutions)
As PCI DSS 4.0.1 enforcement has driven demand for eSkimming security and compliance controls (also known as client-side protection), several big-box CDN and “swiss army knife” security vendors have rushed to capitalize – relabeling legacy tools that had failed in market or launching hastily developed, untested solutions. While these companies are respected in other domains, their eSkimming security and compliance offerings were neither purpose-built for the challenges of script-based attacks nor engineered to preserve revenue-critical site functionality and checkout conversions.
By contrast, Source Defense pioneered the eSkimming security category in 2014 and has spent over a decade working with merchants, PSPs, eCommerce platforms, card brands, and the PCI Council to shape both the standards and the solutions. Our platform is PCI-certified (via AoC with IBM), tested across more than 1,000 enterprise deployments, and proven to deliver real-time protection without compromising functionality or adding friction to the user journey.
What we’ve learned—and what the market now confirms—is that controls must not only meet compliance requirements but must do so without jeopardizing site stability and functionality or the user experience – all of which have an impact on the revenue potential of the online channel. The time for experimentation has passed. The results are in: shortcuts cost more.
Beware Impact to Site Functionality and the User Experience and The Ongoing Costs of Operation
When security measures affect the user experience, the consequences extend well beyond the cost of non-compliance. Many of these fly by night tools can interfere with the normal operation of your website. Poorly designed solutions cause errors at critical moments during checkout, disrupt dynamic content, and damage brand perception. These interruptions introduce friction across the customer journey—leading to lower SEO rankings, abandoned carts, smaller transactions, and ultimately lost revenue.
Behind every change to normal site operation or uptick in downtime is a team under pressure. For digital, product, and ecommerce leaders, these aren’t just technical issues—they’re tied to KPIs, bonuses, and job security. When checkout performance falters or revenue drops, these are often the people held accountable.
Cost of Operation
One of the biggest issues many organizations are running into with some of these fly by night solutions relates to the true cost of ownership. These big players in CDN and security have used creative and gimmicky price bundling to provide “FREE” or “FREE FOR THE FIRST YEAR!” offerings. Organizations who have taken this bait have soon discovered that these solutions add a significant amount of management burden (that cannot be quantified for consideration before deciding on a solution), that they don’t perform without a massive amount of care and feeding, or that they require alert integration into the SoC in order to be effective. The cost of ownership becomes anything but free as a result – and the user experience is anything but easy.
Source Defense has spent the past 11 years developing its solutions to deliver on three core promises for Security Operations:
- They will be easy to install and use – requiring virtually no time to get running, and will work out of the box without tuning, configuration and integration into other systems.
- They will work right out of the box and function in a “set it and forget it” capacity – our solutions come pre-configured, can be modified simply with our advice, are designed to address the problem without adding any additional burden to over burdened teams…in fact, our flag ship Source Defense Protect solution uses a prevention first approach which kills threats automatically and requires less than an hour a month of management as a result.
- They will be the most cost-effective solutions you ever deploy – we’ve priced our solutions in such a way that they cost virtually nothing in the grand scheme of your operational budget. These other solutions will – without question – cost many times more when said and done…even if they offer “FREE” as a pricing gimmick.
Compliance Check Boxes versus Real-World Protection
Many of the new security solutions are designed primarily to simply help organizations “check-the-boxes” mandated by PCI DSS 4.0.1. While achieving compliance is an important benchmark, it does not necessarily translate into comprehensive protection. A solution that merely provides a static inventory of scripts or relies exclusively on Content Security Policy (CSP) and Subresource Integrity (SRI) techniques may satisfy regulatory requirements on paper, but it often ignores the broader impact on website functionality and security.
Static measures can become ineffective in the dynamic environment of modern web applications. Third-party scripts are updated frequently, and their behavior can change unexpectedly. A tool that offers only periodic reviews and manual updates to maintain compliance is likely to fall short when it comes to safeguarding sensitive customer data in real time. In short, a check-box approach may provide the necessary documentation for an audit, but it fails to address the evolving threat landscape and its potential to disrupt site functionality and compromise customer trust.
Before You Choose, Ask the Right Questions
- How long has the solution been on the market?
- Is it actively deployed in real-world environments today?
- Can it monitor and control both third- and fourth-party scripts in real time?
- Can it detect and manage unauthorized “shadow” scripts introduced by third parties?
- Does it offer push-button evidence to support PCI audits?
- Does it actually proactively prevent data leakage, or just log that it happened?
If the answer to any of these questions is unclear or underwhelming, it may be time to reconsider before the cost and losses mount further.
Your eCommerce revenue is too important to trust to unproven solutions. The compliance deadline is already here. Don’t put your business at risk by trusting unproven technology. Choose the platform that already meets the mark—and has for years.
The Source Defense Advantage
Source Defense was the pioneer in eSkimming security and has been protecting some of the world’s largest brands for nearly a decade. Our platform has a proven track record, with over 1,000 brands and billions of dollars in eCommerce sales protected. Trusted by more than 200 QSACs, our behavior-based security solution goes beyond compliance. Unlike static security measures that simply check boxes, our platform monitors and controls script behavior in real time.
We understand that protecting your payment environment is only one part of your website’s overall security. Our approach ensures that security controls do not come at the expense of user experience. With Source Defense, you get automated blocking of unauthorized script behavior without interrupting legitimate website operations. This means you maintain both a compliant and a high-performing website, preserving the trust of your customers and protecting your revenue stream.
Turn Compliance into a Competitive Advantage
When you choose a mature, proven solution, you are not only satisfying the regulatory demands of PCI DSS 4.0.1 but also safeguarding your site and ensuring a seamless customer experience. Rather than risking the potential disruption of unproven tools, invest in a solution that has been battle-tested in the field. Protect your revenue and enhance your reputation by choosing behavior-based security that adapts to the ever-changing landscape of web threats.
For organizations looking to secure their payment pages without compromising user experience or site functionality, Source Defense offers a comprehensive, easy-to-deploy solution. It is designed to integrate smoothly into your operations while providing the robust, real-time monitoring needed to combat eSkimming attacks effectively.
Secure your payment processes, protect your revenue, and establish trust with a solution built on years of proven expertise. Contact us today to learn more about how Source Defense can transform your approach to eSkimming security while delivering the experience your customers demand.
Source Defense is a Principal Participating Organization with the PCI Security Standards Council and the pioneer in eSkimming security. We’ve helped thousands of the world’s leading brands address these issues and continue to educate merchants, QSAs, and stakeholders about the vulnerabilities in modern website design that make eSkimming attacks possible.
PCI DSS 4.0 makes client-side security a priority.
Source Defense delivers a solution for 6.4.3 and 11.6.1 without adding a burden to your security teams.