A recent survey from Deloitte showed that more than half of Americans are concerned about the safety of their personal data on shopping websites. Plus, 42 percent are also concerned about their data in brick-and-mortar stores. Here are some recommendations for making your Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and other holiday shopping expeditions safer.
- Use your credit card, not your debit card, if possible. Credit cards offer more fraud protection, while debit cards are like paying cash. If you do use your debit card, cover the keypad while you type in your PIN so nobody standingnearby can see it or take a picture of it with their phone.
- While shopping online, lock for an icon of a lock and verify that “https” shows up in the URL of the website. Both of these are signals indicating that it is a secure transaction. Log out of the transaction when you’re finished before going to another website.
- Never use a free or public wi-fi access point, such as those at airports or coffee shops, for credit card or banking transactions. It’s too easy for someone to hack into your account over an open network.
- Create strong passwords, and use different ones for the websites that you save your financial details on. In case your password is stolen or guessed, that will limit the number of sites that the thief could access.
- Consider using a password manager to keep track of passwords and generate new ones that will be hard to crack. Check software reviews at CNET and PC Magazine for affordable, easy-to-install password managers.
- Buy gift cards from a retailer instead of a third party. Think twice before buying gift cards from eBay or Craigslist; they could be already used and the seller could be a scammer.
- Set up online access to your credit card and bank accounts. That way, you can review them more often than once a month, when you get your paper statements. The sooner you spot any fraudulent charges and report them to your financial institution, the better!
I hope these tips will make your all your holiday shopping worry-free!
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