Knowing instantly if your online content changes including the unexpected

18 Mar 2014

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Any business operating online runs the risk of something going wrong with content - and when it does happen it's important the right people get to know quickly they may need to act.

Whether an unseen technical error or unwanted action by hackers, sudden changes to content can be spotted early if monitored by the web governance service provided by Sitemorse, which continually reviews and watches for anomalies and recent changes.

Should prices of items across categories or groups of products, for example, change significantly there can be an immediate alert for digital content or brand managers - including warning text messages for urgent problems that happen outside normal hours.

Here are some real-world examples that happened recently where teams were caught out, leaving their organisations vulnerable to potential fraud, damaged customer relations and negative publicity.

- An unexpected technical glitch or error
A UK retailer suffered a technical glitch in January that reduced the price of everything on the website to just £34.99 - including power tools and 'big ticket' items such as ride-on mowers with normal price tags in the thousands, according to national newspaper reports.

- An attack by external hackers
Hackers who attacked the website of the leading body for postgraduate education in the UK, stealing user passwords and publishing them online have allegedly been able to get back into the site and have defaced it for a second time, according to media reports.

The website of the UK Council for Graduate Education joins that of Birmingham and Mole Valley councils for the high-profile attack, which saw more than 600 user passwords uploaded to the web.

A hacker using the alias smitt3nz claimed responsibility for the original attack, which prompted an online apology from the UK Council for Graduate Education. No financial details were leaked, but users were asked to re-register.