Safe online shopping
Shopping has been rapidly moving online during the past years. Online shopping is attracting more people since it is much faster and convenient way to shop. You do not need to go anywhere, you can buy what you need even during your lunch break at work. Also the shipping is fast, there are a lot of bargains online that you won’t get in physical stores and you can always return it if it doesn’t fit. Everything looks perfect. Well, no. Shopping online has its threats.
Number of cyber threats like identity theft are increasing online and during your online shopping time, your sensitive information like bank account passwords can be easily stolen. Don’t worry there are things you can do to be safe while shopping online.
1. Use a VPN
A Virtual Private Network is one of the best ways to keep your identity and information anonymous and secure. It encrypts your traffic online and secures you from third parties accessing your information and stealing something that belongs to you. A good VPN for safe shopping online is Surfshark. It uses industry leading encryption, has fast servers worldwide and supports an unlimited number of devices. You can get 83% discount for Surfshark right now.
2. Have a strong password
Strong passwords are a key for securing you accounts online. You need strong ones, it is always easier to make them by using such tools as secure password generators. Also you need different passwords for all of your accounts — if one account gets hacked, others won’t. Since remembering all the passwords is hard, you can keep them in one safe place with such softwares as Keeper. With password managers you will only need to remember one password for the Keeper account.
3. Make sure the website is safe
Well, first of all, stick to known websites like Amazon, or online shops of physicals stores that you know. Also always look for the lock next to the domain name, if a website has a lock it means it is verified as secure, also use HTTPS everywhere. One more advice is to always check for reviews of the website online, if the site is unsecured you will definitely find information about it.
4. Avoid public Wi-fi
Doing your purchase while connected to public wi-fi is the most unsecured way, since being hacked while connected to it is super easy. Hackers know how to access users information through public wifi, so it will be better if you don’t use it while shopping or doing something that requires you entering banking information. Or use a VPN while connected to the open Wi-Fi then you will be safe.
5. Skip the card
Paying with mobile phones is getting acceptable and used by many users. Also it is a more secure option than paying with credit card. Using a mobile paying apps like Apple Pay is much more secure and even more convenient and you can use mobile payment methods on a lot of online shopping sites. While using mobile payment apps, you eliminate the threats of facing card skimmers.
6. Complain
If you do encounter cyber attack while shopping don’t be afraid to complain. Complain to the seller if they do not react, complain to higher authorities. Don’t be silent, try to get your money back or at least keep other people secure and help them avoid your mistake.
