Tips For Safe Online Shopping
With the holiday season fast approaching, perhaps you're considering online shopping for gifts because it's convenient, quick, and can potentially save you money. Or maybe online is the only place you've been able to find those special earrings for Aunt Agnes.
Online shopping can be just as safe as (or maybe even safer than) going about it the traditional brick-and-mortar way... as long as you follow a few simple precautions.
Six important safety tips include:
- Buy from reputable, recognizable sellers.
- When in doubt, check them out: call the company by phone to determine if they're legitimate.
(See only an email address as contact info... or do you immediately get voice mail when calling? Both are red flags.)
- Avoid using any publicly shared computer (such as in a library or at a cybercafe) when shopping online.
- Use your credit card: federal law limits your liability to $50 in charges, should someone use your credit card fraudulently.
- Make sure you're transferred to a secure site (having a url starting with "https") when it comes time to provide the merchant your credit card details. Never provide this info by general email or instant messaging... neither is secure.
- Suspect the suspicious: information like your date of birth or Social Security number shouldn't be necessary to complete a sale.
For more tips, see the online shopping advice on creditunionsrock.com.
Look to the websites listed below to verify if the shopping site you're potentially dealing with is legitimate:
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