Staying Secure While Shopping Online

Shopping online can be fast and convenient, and offers consumers a seemingly endless selection of merchandise. It’s no surprise that the volume of purchases made online continues to grow. Unfortunately, buyers and sellers aren’t the only winners in the online marketplace. Cyber criminals and attackers are also profiting from online shopping’s growth.

As unsuspecting online shoppers freely supply their personal information, attackers can steal it for their own gain. They might sell consumer information, such as buying history and credit card numbers. Or, they might use that information to make their own purchases. Shoppers are at risk each time they hit the “checkout” button, so it’s important to know how to protect yourself when shopping online.

How Online Shoppers are Targeted

Attackers generally use one of three methods to target online shoppers:

• Accessing vulnerable computers – Computers that are not protected from viruses or malware are typically more vulnerable to access by cyber criminals.
• “Phishing” for information – Attackers can set up fraudulent websites or send fake emails that appear to be legitimate, but are simply channels for collecting personal and financial information from unsuspecting recipients. They often use charitable organizations as a cover, especially after natural disasters or during the holiday season.
• Intercepting non-secure transactions – Vendors that do not use encryption for web transactions can leave consumer information vulnerable to interception.

Cyber criminals are becoming more adept at stealing information, but consumers can avoid becoming their victims.

7 Tips for Secure Online Shopping

Fortunately, it’s easy to protect yourself when shopping online. Start by following these simple tips:

• Safeguard your computer – To prevent attackers from stealing information on your computer, install anti-virus software, a firewall and anti-spyware software, and keep them updated. In addition, update your computer’s applications and software when prompted to do so. Updates often include repairs for known vulnerabilities. It may be beneficial to change your preferences to “automatically update” so you won’t have to worry.
• Shop only on reputable sites – It’s important to make sure you are dealing with a reputable company. Review website certificates for encryption, and record phone numbers and addresses in case of a problem. Beware of merchants with just PO boxes and no street address.
• Look out for phony emails – Be suspicious of emails requesting your personal information, and avoid clicking on web links in messages from senders you don’t recognize. In addition, don’t send sensitive information or credit card numbers through email.
• Be sure your transaction is encrypted – Sites that encrypt information have URLs that begin with “https” and include a padlock icon. A closed padlock indicates that encryption is used to transfer information, so it’s safe to proceed. If either the “https” or the icon is missing, don’t provide sensitive information.
• Check the vendor’s privacy policy – A website’s privacy policy details how your information will be used and distributed. As a consumer, it’s important to understand the privacy settings, and if you don’t agree with them, don’t proceed.
• Be choosy when providing information – Legitimate online retailers don’t ask for your social security number or date of birth. Provide the least possible amount of information necessary to get your transaction processed.
• Use a credit card and check your statements – If fraud occurs on a credit card transaction, your liability is often limited, but debit cards don’t offer such protection. In addition, when you use a debit card, money is drawn directly from your bank account, so fraudulent charges can cause immediate harm. Be sure to check your online credit card statement often for unauthorized activity.

Be Smart When Shopping Online

Technology has made it easy to shop online for everything from clothing to cars – but it can also leave you susceptible to fraud. Make it harder for cyber criminals to steal your personal information by staying on guard, and protecting your private information and your computer.