With so many digital devices readily available to us, we have become accustomed to shopping online. Online shopping is fun, but if something goes wrong it can really spoil your mood and ruin your bank balance. If you are a frequent online shopper, then you must be aware of the pop-up and banner ads that keep coming to your web page unexpectedly. These disturbances are mostly caused by hackers who run after your money and leave you with empty pockets or huge shopping bills.
Here are some tips that will help you stay safe while shopping online:
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1. Stick with authorized and trusted online shopping portals
The same way you would not enter a shopping mall that you do not expect to have good merchandise and service, you should be apprehensive about visiting an unknown or lesser known shopping portal. Some signs to look for when checking to see if a shopping portal is fake and after your money, check for frequent pop-ups, unimpressive web page display, and content full of errors.
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2. Be careful while shopping online using mobile devices
The smartphones that are available on the market today are capable of doing almost anything a desktop computer can. However, your smartphone might not be as well protected against malware and hackers as your computer. Most phones lack anti-virus software which makes it easier for hackers to break into your device and steal your bank details, or redirect you to another website where they can do so.
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3. Do not use public WiFi when online shopping
You are more prone to identity theft if you are fetching your personal details on an online shopping portal while using a public WiFi. Most public WiFi providers do not encrypt your data, and thus it becomes easily available to hackers waiting to break into your mobile systems and steal your personal and financial details.
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4. Check your credit card statements regularly
If you use a credit card for shopping online, then you are choosing a smarter way. When we buy something from a malicious site using a debit card or cash, we do not get that money back. However, if you make a purchase using a credit card, under the Fair Credit Billing Act, credit card companies are required to refund the full amount to your account. Still, it is your responsibility to keep an eye on your bank statements so that you can monitor the expenses that you make, and also the ones that you do not make.
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5. Change your passwords on a regular basis
It seems like a boring and tedious thing to change your passwords frequently, but it will likely keep your account secure. Also, do not use the same password for all of your accounts as this increase the chance that a hacker may break into multiple accounts.
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6. Look for shopping portals with HTTPS in the URL
The world of the internet uses thousands of acronyms, and it is impossible for everyone to keep track of all of them. URLs that include HTTPS are the best options as these represent the authorized websites that encrypt your data and allow only the intended persons to access it.