The holiday season is upon us and millions of people around the world are looking to buy the perfect gifts. Many of us will choose to shop online in search of a great deal. Unfortunately, this is also a cyber criminal’s favorite time of the year to commit online or financial fraud. Here are tips to help shop securely during the holiday season.
Identifying Fake Online Stores
While most online stores are legitimate, some are not. Cyber criminals create fake websites by copying the look of, or using the name of, well-known stores. They then use these websites to prey on people who are looking for the best deal possible. When you search online for the absolute lowest prices, you may be directed to one of these fake websites.
When selecting a website to purchase a product, be wary of websites advertising prices dramatically cheaper than anywhere else or offering products sold out nationwide. The reason their products are so cheap or available is because what you will receive is a counterfeit or stolen item, or, in some cases, you will never even receive anything. Protect yourself by doing the following:
- Verify the website has a legitimate mailing address and a phone number for sales or support-related questions. If the site looks suspicious, call and speak to a human.
- Look for obvious warning signs like poor grammar and spelling.
- Never buy anything online using your credit card from a site that doesn’t have secure connection. You’ll know if the site is secure because the URL for the site will start with HTTPS:// (instead of just HTTP://).
- Be very suspicious if a website appears to be an exact replica of a well-known website you have used in the past, but the website domain name or the name of the store is slightly different.
- Type the store’s name or URL into a search engine and see what other people have said about the website in the past. Look for terms like “scam,” “never again,” or “fake.” A lack of reviews is also not a good sign, as it indicates that the website is very new.
- No online shopping store needs your social security number or your birthday to do business. However, if cyber criminals get them, and, combined with your credit card number, they can do a lot of damage. The more personal information the cyber criminals know, the easier it is to steal your identity.
Remember, just because the site looks professional does not mean it’s legitimate. If something about the site sets off warning bells, take time to investigate. If you aren’t comfortable with the website, don’t use it. Instead, find a well-known website you can trust or have used safely in the past. You may not find quite as great a deal or find that hot ticket item, but you are much more likely to end up with a legitimate product and a clean credit report.
Keeping Your Credit Card Secure
Keep an eye on your credit card statements to identify suspicious charges by reviewing your statements regularly. Some credit card providers give you the option of notifying you by email or text messages every time a charge is made to your card or when charges exceed a set amount. Another option is to have one credit card just for online purchases. That way, if it is compromised, you can easily change the card without impacting any of your other payment activities. If you believe fraud has been committed, call your credit card company right away and explain the situation.
- Credit cards are better for online purchases than debit cards. Debit cards take money directly from your bank account and, if fraud has been committed, it can be far more difficult to get your money back.
- Check your statements. Don’t wait for your bill to come at the end of the month. Go online regularly during the holiday season and look at electronic statements for your credit card, debit card, and checking accounts. Make sure you don’t see any fraudulent charges, even originating from well-known sites you may have used previously.
- If you do see something wrong, pick up the phone to address the matter quickly. In the case of credit cards, pay the bill only once you know all your charges are accurate.
Whether its holiday time or any other time of the year we all need to be cautious, diligent, and think things through when we are shopping online. Remember, if a deal seems to be too good to be true it probably is a scam.
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