Holiday Safety Tip: How to be a Safe Online Shopper

Today’s Holiday Safety Tip goes out to all the people who haven’t gotten their holiday shopping done yet. Behold, your salvation lies only a few mouse clicks away. Thanks to the web, even the laziest among us can pick up critical holiday items and have them delivered right to our doors by Christmas Eve.

Of course, there are drawbacks to shopping online. If you’re not careful about how or where you shop, you could open yourself up to identity thieves and other crooks. According to the National Retail Federation, the average holiday shopper is expected to spend about 2.74 this season. That’s no small amount, especially in a recession. So, what can you do to make sure your money goes toward presents and not into a cybercriminal’s pocket?

First, only shop at trusted online retailers. While it gets knocked for the occasional bad user experience, a website like Amazon is big enough and has been around long enough to ensure a safe transaction. If it’s a site you’ve never heard of before, check for online reviews from other users. If it still seems fishy, go somewhere else. Also, a legitimate website’s security should be certified by a third-party. For example, if you visit ReputationDefender.com, you’ll see we are certified by VeriSign, TRUSTe, and McAfee Security.

Second, don’t shop over unsecured wireless networks. While it may seem ideal to sit back in a café sipping on hot chocolate as you click your way through your shopping list, you run the risk of losing your credit card information to any hackers on the network.

Third, don’t enter your credit card information into an unsecured website. When you go to make a purchase online, look for “https” in the URL. This means you’re visiting a secure website. You can also check a website’s digital security certificate by looking for the yellow padlock in the lower right-hand part of your browser.

Check back to ReputationDefender Blog tomorrow for one more holiday safety tip.