Cyber criminals are always out ready to steal the credit card info or other private banking information of online shoppers as they shop on cyber Monday or on other days. In less than 1 minute you can find out what these cyber thieves are planning and guard yourself against them.  So, here are some tips to shop safely online.

  • Be very careful when you use free public Wi-Fi hot spots for online shopping, as you will be under data snatchers eyes. You can trust the waiters at a restaurant that you regularly visit, but you cannot trust the people sitting next to you who are totally strange to you. Hackers get easy access to the public Wi-Fi networks that are not protected with passwords and hack your private info. It is dangerous purchasing stuff with a credit card on public connections that are not protected with a password. So what is your option? Well your option is surf on secure connections like your home or office or do tethering for a smart phone and laptop and you can surf on encrypted connections. Unlike the public internet transmissions, communication through phone is encrypted, so you can access the web at any place from where you can place a call.
  • Shop only on reputable shopping websites that are encrypted. Look for “https” in the website address, a lock symbol in the browser or the web address in green color . All these things indicate that the site is safe.
  •  Use a credit only instead of debit Always for shopping online. This is because debit cards are riskier and when a hacker gets your debit card info your entire money in the debit card will be swiped without you having any hint about it. If your information is compromised, funds will be immediately swiped from your bank without you even having an idea about it. According to federal law it take around 2 weeks to investigate the fraud activity and return your money to your account and meanwhile you will be left with no money to spend for 2 weeks. If you do not report the fraud fast, you could lose all the money on deposit with your bank.
  •  Never provide your personal info like bank account details, PIN numbers, etc to online stores when you are shopping.
  • Do not have a password similar for all the websites and never have a password with your birth date, your name, your pet name or any complete words that can be easily guessed by anyone. Also if you have a common one for all the websites, then if one account is hacked then you might risk your other accounts to be hacked too. Always form a password that consists upper and lower case letters, symbols etc. Use a password protection software for assistance in strong password creation and safe storage of all your passwords.
  • If you suspect the security of a website then do not linger around for long and leave it immediately. These suspicious website ask shoppers for more than required personal info.
  • If not shopping actively online then sign off of these sites immediately once you are done. Protect your smart phone, iPad, and laptops with a strong password so that they cannot be easily accessed. When you lose them or they are stolen remotely swipe their memory if they contain your personal info that you do not want hackers to lay their hands on your info.
  • Use automated account charges to get info on your credit card charges and bank balances, so that you can immediately catch fraud immediately and also get clear info on your banking history. When you are shopping a lot online,  keep a check on your banking details and credit transfers. Tally the receipts and your statements and check if they there are any fraud charges. Make sure you even check out minor amount charged, it is the way hackers test if you are aware of the fraud going on and if you do not notice they swipe your entire account next time. Subscribe for credit accounts alerts that will automatically send you texts or emails every time you buy a thing.
  • If possible use a credit card that can be used for single time or a virtual one. Some companies that issue credit cards offer these type of cards that are safe to use. A random  number generated for a virtual credit card can be used as a substitute for credit card.
  • Always shop on non public PC and a internet  network that is password protected, latest anti-malware software and OS. So, shop if possible only on home computers as they are more secure.
  • If you want to make donations then make sure you know them well and do not transfer money  through check or cash based on just a tweet or a phone call. If you really want to make a donation then contact them through a website.
  • Read mail attachments from known persons only. In case you do not who the sender is, do not open the attachments as it could be spyware trying to get your details of shopping.

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