Shopping online has become a big trend in recent years and it is only going to get more popular. However with the convenience of shopping online comes the possibility of security issues with fraud and other similar circumstances.
However, to combat these concerns and make your online shopping experience a more safe and pleasant one, we’ve come up with five great tips to help.
Instead of using a search engine to randomly find a website that sells the item you are looking for, start at a trusted website that you know is reliable such as Amazon.com. You can also try going to a major retailer website such as Target or Best Buy. However, make sure you spell the domain right (including the top-level domain – ie: .net, .org, .com, etc) as you may go to a similar website that is not the official site.
By using a big familiar name brand website you are more likely to get the exact service you expect without any worry of online fraud.
In order to purchase products online, you need to submit your personal information in the form of a credit card, paypal information, or other personal payment information. When you submit this information you want to make sure it is secure and protected from people trying to steal the information while you process your transaction.
For the website to be secure it should have an SSL (secure socket layer) installed to encrypt all the information being passed through the website. You can tell this security measure is in place by looking for a lock in the browser (usually by the website URL) when you get to the page that asks for your payment details.
Another way you can tell the website is secure is by looking at the beginning of the URL and see if it starts with HTTP:// or HTTPS://. If it starts with HTTPS:// you know the page is secure and your transaction should be safe.
If you don’t see a lock anywhere in the browser then don’t make the purchase on this website as it isn’t safe and secure.
When purchasing items online the retailer does not need to know your birthday, social security number or other personal information of that nature to do business with you. The business just requires your name, payment details, and address details. Make sure you do not give more information than needed to keep your identity safe.
Make sure that at the end of the month, you check your banking statements for anything out of the ordinary. If you see something you don’t recognize, you may have had your credit card information stolen. Make sure it isn’t something you’ve purchased and then call your credit card company to put a hold on the card and reverse the transactions that you didn’t make.
It’s always good to watch your bank statements closely when purchasing items online. Especially if you are purchasing a product from a new website you haven’t done business with before in the past.
In order to make it less likely for you to experience fraud while shopping online it is important to make sure your computer is safe. This means you should do a little bit extra to take precautions. Make sure you have an antivirus software installed on your computer to protect your computer from malicious software that is designed to steal your personal information.
Also make sure you run security scans on a monthly basis to remove any unwanted software from your computer.
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