The Ten Commandments of Online Shopping: How to Shop Online Safely

You are shopping safely online, aren’t you? Aren’t you? If you’re not, you are putting yourself at risk for all sorts of fun things, such as getting your account information stolen, credit or debit fraud, or identity theft. Shop at some unsafe places and you may not even get your items. The worst part? You may not even notice you’ve been taken advantage of until you see a statement that doesn’t add up. Take a few minutes and protect yourself. Here’s the Ten Commandments of Online Shopping.

1. Do not shop while you are using public Wi-Fi hotspots. It’s far too easy for unsavory people to utilize programs such as Firesheep to get your personal information, or just look over your shoulder while you are sipping on your latte.
2. Do not save your credit card information for any website. Be a big bee and retype it every time you shop there – it’s not worth the risk to save it.
3. Don’t let your browser save passwords for different sites.
4. Use a credit card, not your debit card for your online purchases. Debit cards usually don’t have the same type of liability protection as credit cards. Some credit card companies have specific online policies. Check yours out.
5. Be careful where you are shopping. Shop reputable, familiar stores.
6. Make sure you shopping on a secure site. This means that your personal information – including your credit card information — will be encrypted, making it harder for hackers to get to it. SSL or Secure Sockets Layer is the most common type of encryption. Look for a little closed padlock and “https” in the address bar. The “s” means your information will be encrypted.
7. Use a multi-layered approach for protecting your PC. Make sure your firewall is on, use an anti-virus program, and use an anti-malware program as well. ChicaPC-Shield™ will quickly scan your PC for threats from viruses, worms, and other malicious software, and it’s free.
8. A reputable online store will have a privacy policy. Read it – it will tell you what information they collect from their customers, and whether or not they share this information with third parties. If you don’t want a lot of spammy email, make sure you opt out of any sort of email lists.
9. Before you buy, be sure find out specifics such as: packaging costs, delivery costs, when you will be billed for the item, whether you can track your order online, what the return policy is, etc. Always print out a copy of your order for your records.
10. Frequently go through your credit card statements carefully to be sure there aren’t charges you didn’t authorize.

Want more information? Read How to Protect Your Identity Online for more ways to protect yourself, then get out there and become a tech-savvy online shopper.

–Angela Skinner Mullen