The holidays are coming up, which means it’s times to start shopping. Over the past few years more and more people have starting turning to the Internet for all their holiday shopping rather than battling the long lines at the department stores.
I have been an Internet shopper for years. I’ve never been a fan of crowds, or crowded parking, and the holidays seems to bring those 2 things together all at once every single place I like to go shopping. I can remember one year going and stocking up on basic items so I wouldn’t have to go anywhere near the Target or Wal-Mart during the holiday season.
If you plan of shopping online his holiday season, there are a few basic safety tips you should consider.
1. Only shop on sites that can provide you with a secure Internet connection. You can tell a connection is secure by seeing a small padlock icon on your Internet browser window. If a connection is not secure then other people on the Internet will be able to easily hack into your purchase and obtain your credit card numbers and personal information.
2. Try to only shop on reputable websites. Sites like Amazon and Barnes and noble are going to be safe websites to shop on. Billy bobs Soap Factory, may not be as safe. Make sure that where you’re shopping is either a store you are very familiar with, or a store you have verified is a real business through the experience of other Internet users.
3. Do not shop in coffee shops. Sure your wifi is great and you can surf the web in your neighborhood Starbucks. Using wifi in open networks like coffee shops however opens your computer up for other people in area to get into your computer, as well as those sitting nearby to see what your doing. Typing in credit card info in those area is always a bad idea. If you want to shop, save a shopping cart, and then log on when you get home to complete your purchases.