Using IP analysis to secure your online business

IP address

Gergo Varga, Senior Content Manager at SEON tells us how you can protect your company from attacks via your IP address.

We live in a world full of remarkable developments that were unimaginable just a few decades ago. Nobody would’ve believed you if you told someone from that time that you have a small robotic friend called Alexa that can turn on or off the lights, start the heating, make a grocery list, play music, and even speak with you. But those developments weren’t only beneficial for us, but also for fraudsters who have used them for their malicious actions.

Fraud has become more widespread than ever, with new cyber-attacks or fraud attempts happening constantly. From big companies like The Colonial Pipeline Attack to individuals, fraudsters don’t care who their target is if they can profit.

Unfortunately, fraudsters will never stop, but that doesn’t mean you have to accept that you will eventually become a target of a cyber-attack or fraud. Yes, you might become a target, but by using proper security measures, you will be able to prevent your business from becoming a victim.

Cybersecurity has also been evolving through the years, trying not only to keep up with the fraudsters but get ahead of them and prevent attacks before they can cause any damage. From antivirus programs, firewalls, multi-factor verification methods to IP analysis, there are cybersecurity tools available that can suit everybody’s needs. This method gives you an opportunity to stop fraudsters before they even get the chance to enter your network. The best method for keeping your business secure is prevention and not reaction.

What is an IP address?

An IP address or Internet Protocol address allows us to be connected to the Internet and be part of the modern digital world. Anything from accessing the websites to using emails would be impossible without it, as an IP address is what allows one connected device to communicate with another device over the Internet. You can think of an IP address as your phone number or home address by having other parties know where to reach you. With the IP address, the Internet will know where to send your data.

What is IP analysis?

The IP address analysis is one of the most common methods used in cybersecurity. It allows you to get more insight into your users, where they are located, and their intentions towards your business. It is also helpful in different aspects of business, such as marketing as it helps you optimize your targeted marketing strategy.

Streaming services even use the geolocation aspect of IP analysis to determine if the users are legally allowed to access their content due to copyright regulations. In cybersecurity, IP analysis is used to determine any red flags connected with the IP address in question. According to the survey conducted by Small Business Trends, just 14 percent of small businesses would say their ability to mitigate cyber risks is “highly effective.” Introducing IP analysis can increase that number.

What data can IP analysis uncover:

Geolocation: If it is a legitimate IP address, then it will indicate where the user is located. This is extremely useful as it can indicate account takeover fraud or other kinds of fraudulent actions. For example, if you suddenly receive a large number of visits from a country you never had a visitor from before or if a user has accessed your site from a completely different country than during their previous visits.

Internet Service Provider: This helps you discover where the connection is coming from, such as a residential home, library, or web servers and data centers. Fraudsters will most likely use the latter, so you can use this knowledge to react on time.

Read More:

Spam checklist scan: It compares the IP addresses that access your website with the database of IP addresses used for email spamming. IP analysis will not say for sure if you have been targeted by fraudulent actions, but it can indicate red flags and give you a chance to react on time. From blocking that IP address immediately to requesting additional information to verify the user, there are numerous ways in which you can protect your business from threats indicated by IP analysis. It should be combined with additional fraud prevention methods such as device fingerprinting, email lookup tools, or data enrichment for best results.

Click here to discover more of our podcasts

For more news from Top Business Tech, don’t forget to subscribe to our daily bulletin!

Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter

Gergo Varga

Gergo Varga has been fighting online fraud since 2009 at various companies – even co-founding his own anti-fraud startup. He's the author of the Fraud Prevention Guide for Dummies – SEON Special edition. He currently works as the Senior Content Manager / Evangelist at SEON, using his industry knowledge to keep marketing sharp, communicating between the different departments to understand what's happening on the frontlines of fraud detection. He lives in Budapest, Hungary, and is an avid reader of philosophy and history.

How smart labels are transforming supply chains

Sharath Muddaiah • 27th January 2025

As e-commerce continues to rise globally, the impact of just-in-time manufacturing and rising consumer expectations mean the need for real-time visibility has never been greater. Smart labels directly address this demand, offering solutions to long-standing challenges like shipment delays, theft, and the lack of traceability. With the smart label market projected to grow from $14.1...

The rise of loyalty apps

Sue Azari • 17th January 2025

Increased choice and a consumer more price sensitive than ever before, has made customers far more likely to shop around for the best deals. Price is now the number one factor in brand consideration. In an effort to bag a bargain, loyalty programs have become increasingly popular with consumers, with nine out of ten in...

Rocket launch challenges Elon Musk’s space dominance

Professor Sultan Mahmud • 16th January 2025

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s space company has blasted its first rocket into orbit in a bid to challenge the dominance of Elon Musk’s SpaceX. The New Glenn rocket launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 02:02 local time (07:02 GMT). It firmly pits the world’s two richest men against each other in...

Giesecke+Devrient launches new Smart Label at CES 2025

Giesecke Devrient • 06th January 2025

G+D has today launched the G+D Smart Label, its innovative tracking solution that transforms any package into an IoT device. Ultra-thin and only slightly larger than a credit card, the new Smart Label proposition has been jointly developed by G+D in conjunction with its hardware partner, Sensos to enable cost-effective, accurate location tracking for a...

Choose an AI solution to transform beyond technology

Kit Cox • 09th December 2024

The first step is knowing exactly what your business wants to achieve with AI; think faster, smarter and more efficient. Once you know what you are working towards, you can start looking for a solution that can help you make it a reality. AI integration can feel like a daunting task at the beginning, so...

A Roadmap to Security and Privacy Compliance

John Lynch Director of Kiteworks • 04th December 2024

Only by understanding the current regulatory environment and implementing robust data protection measures, can organisations enhance their security posture, ensure compliance, and build resilience against the latest cyber threats. This article provides a comprehensive roadmap of how to do it.

Data-Sharing Done Right: Finding the Best Business Approach

Bart Koek • 20th November 2024

To ensure data is not only available, but also accessible to those that need it, businesses recognise that it is vital to focus on collecting, sorting and governing all the data in their organisation. But what happens when data also needs to be accessed and shared across the business? That is where organisations discover a...