Shielding Your Amazon Business from Bots, Backdoors and Breaches
Based on recent revelations about the serious risks of data scraping bots for Amazon and data theft and extortion for Snowflake users, using two-step verification for Amazon seller accounts is critical. As a matter of fact, since March 28, 2024, Amazon added a two-factor authentication (2FA) requirement for all logins.
A two-step verification security measure safeguards against specific, documented threats to your Amazon business operations and financial stability. Leveraging 2FA requires minimal time investment, but its protection is substantial.
The Business Case for Two-Step Verification
Two-step verification, or two-factor authentication (2FA), requires two forms of identification to access your account: your password and a second verification code sent to a designated device.
For Amazon sellers, implementing this security measure is crucial for several reasons:
- Financial Protection: Your Amazon seller account is directly linked to your business’s revenue stream. Unauthorized access could lead to financial losses through fraudulent transactions or redirected funds.
- Data Breach Prevention: Seller accounts contain sensitive customer information. A breach could result in significant legal and financial liabilities under data protection regulations like GDPR.
- Operational Continuity: Account compromise can lead to business disruptions, affecting your ability to process orders and manage inventory.
- Brand Reputation: Security incidents can damage your reputation with customers and partners, potentially leading to long-term business impacts.
Specific Threats Mitigated by Two-Step Verification
Recent security research has uncovered several specific threats that Two-Step Verification helps mitigate:
- Credential Stuffing Attacks: Cybercriminals use stolen username/password combinations from other breaches to attempt access to Amazon seller accounts. Two-step verification renders these attacks ineffective.
- Phishing Campaigns: Sophisticated phishing attempts target Amazon sellers to steal login credentials. Even if credentials are compromised, Two-Step Verification provides an additional layer of defense.
- Data Scraping Bots: Some third-party software providers use unauthorized data scraping bots to access seller accounts programmatically. These bots bypass Amazon’s official APIs and security protocols, potentially exposing sellers to:
— Unauthorized access to customer PII (Personally Identifiable Information)
— Increased risk of financial fraud
— Potential compliance violations - Supply Chain Attacks: As recent high-profile incidents have demonstrated, attackers may target software providers or contractors with access to multiple seller accounts. Two-step verification adds a crucial layer of protection against such broad-scale compromises.
Implementation of Two-Step Verification
Enabling Two-Step Verification on your Amazon seller account is a straightforward process:
- Log in to Seller Central
- Navigate to Account Settings
- Select “Login Settings” and click “Edit” next to Two-Step Verification
- Follow the on-screen instructions to set up your preferred verification method
Amazon offers multiple options for receiving verification codes:
- SMS text message
- Voice call
- Authenticator app (recommended for enhanced security)
Best Practices for Two-Step Verification
To maximize the effectiveness of Two-Step Verification:
- Use Authenticator Apps: These provide superior security compared to SMS or voice calls and don’t require network access.
- Never allow bots to access your account for data scraping, as they can provide a backdoor despite 2FA protections.
- Implement Multiple Verification Methods: Set up at least two methods to ensure account access if one method becomes unavailable.
- Regularly Update Recovery Methods: Maintain current backup phone numbers and email addresses.
- Limit Use of Trusted Devices: While Amazon allows marking devices as trusted to skip verification, this should be done judiciously. Regular verification is often safer.
- Enforce Company-Wide Adoption: If multiple employees access the seller account, mandate Two-Step Verification use for all users.
Integration with Broader Security Strategy
While Two-Step Verification is crucial, it should be part of a comprehensive security approach:
- Implement robust password policies, including regular updates and unique passwords for each system.
- Never grant user-level access to your accounts for bots to perform data scraping. You can spot programmatic bot access requests to your Amazon accounts because they will ask you to create user-level credentials like client-[brandname]-[marketplace]@domain.com for bot access.
- Conduct regular security awareness training for all staff, focusing on phishing detection and safe browsing practices.
- Perform routine security audits of your Amazon seller account and associated systems.
- Carefully vet any third-party tools or services before granting access to your seller account. Never allow bots access to your account.
Openbridge has a bot-free policy, and we only leverage official, approved APIs for account authorizations (Login With Amazon- LWA), SP-API (Seller Central and Vendor Central), and Amazon Advertising.
Why do we have a bot-free policy? See Why A Bot-Free Policy Is Good For Security.
Activate Two-Step Verification Today!
All Amazon sellers should review their two-step verification immediately to ensure it is properly configured. The potential business risks of account compromise far outweigh the minimal inconvenience of this additional security step.
It’s not just about protecting your business — it’s about safeguarding your customers’ data and maintaining the integrity of your operations on the Amazon platform.
Essential Security for Amazon Seller Accounts: Two-Step Verification (2FA) was originally published in Openbridge on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
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