Online purchases are growing in popularity. On particular occasions, like Black Friday or Christmas, there are more online shoppers. And it is true that we can access anything on the internet. There are hundreds of shops and thousands of products on a single screen, whether it be a computer, smartphone, or tablet.
If we also want to shop online this Christmas to escape the crowds and lines at brick-and-mortar establishments, we must be aware of a number of guidelines to avoid having the joy of these holidays stolen by fraud.
Check the reputation of sellers
Some companies do not require verification, but when we purchase our Christmas gifts from unknown little websites. Is the business reliable?
We may look at what other users think of the website and the experiences other customers have had to dispel any uncertainties. This kind of thought can be found in forums, opinion sites, or on the company’s social media channels.
Verify that the website is secure
The least we can ask for from a website where we submit personal information to make a transaction is that it is secure. To prevent a third party from accessing the data, it is transmitted in encrypted form. much more so when our financial information, like the credit card number, is at risk.
In this way, the address bar of the browser is quite informative. To start, we must confirm that the website’s URL starts with the letter https. Sentimental data is encrypted and sent using the HTTPS protocol. Additionally, the Google Chrome browser includes a symbol with additional information right before the webpage address. A padlock denotes a secure site, and a red triangle with an exclamation mark denotes either a site that is unsafe and warrants caution or one that is directly dangerous and should be avoided on the internet.
Apply common sense and be wary of bargains
Although there are many deals to be found online, common sense must always prevail. It is a fraud to find an iPhone for five euros or an electric scooter for ten.
To prevent someone from assuming our identity, we must be very aware of phishing attacks. Phishing aims to steal our personal information, particularly financial information. Just as we should never use an email link to access our bank’s online banking or enter all of our passwords at once, we also shouldn’t give our personal information to a fictitious company lightly. It is important to check in advance to make sure the cat is not restrained. We can check the website’s spelling, confirm that it is not a faulty translation, ensure that it is well-done and that all the buttons function, check the legal disclaimer and other users’ reviews, etc.
Beware of payments in advance
If we decide to purchase from a private individual because we saw a fantastic deal online and the seller informs us that he only accepts payment by transferring money, we should be cautious because it is likely a scam, and we won’t ever receive the merchandise. Criminals frequently urge their victims to pay through services like Western Union, but in reality, the seller actually gets the money, and the victim never gets the product.
Use prepaid cards
If, despite everything mentioned above, we end up falling for a phishing scam or having our card copied, it had best be a prepaid card. The benefit of this sort of plastic, which is frequently virtual and is only used to make online payments, is that it functions similarly to a wallet in that it only contains the funds that are now being charged by the cardholder.
Prepaid cards can be readily loaded and emptied whenever needed and are not connected to a checking account. It is best to load them whenever you intend to make an online purchase and to empty them after use. As a result, even if the data were duplicated, it would be impossible for someone to steal anything.