Shop online safely and securely with just a few small cautionary steps

Online shopping has experienced a substantial rise in the last decade. Big companies like Amazon, eBay promise cheapest price on almost all types of goods and services. The only hurdle to this market growth is the fear of being scammed and theft of personal data such as credit card information.

So now let’s focus on how to securely post your data online:~

Check Online Reviews of the seller

SSL certified seller

Use Internet Security Softwares

Use Secured connection

Close all other unwanted stuff

Use virtual keyboard

Keep a check on your card statement

Check Online Reviews of the seller

Google the authenticity of the website. Often there are fake dealers who take your money but don’t give anything in return OR provide terrible services such as long shipping time. Check priceangels.com and you will definitely find something you want to buy mainly becuause they are cheap and offer a wide variety of goods. However often customers either never get their products, it’s broken OR not working. So get latest reviews online,read them carefully.

SSL certified seller

Whenever you buy online, make sure that the payment gateway page has a SSL(Secure Socket Layer) certificate and the prefix is https:// and not http://. To check the validity of the SSL, click on the icon before the web URL in the address bar. This ensures security when buying online.

Now that you have verified the seller you are buying from,

Use Internet Security Softwares

Use Inter Security softwares. Often people have Anti-Virus softwares installed and take granted that their data is now secured. But it’s not. You need additional features to make your data more secure and private. Nowadays most of the antivirus companies sell their products in three broad categories, namely:

Anti-virus

Internet Security (includes anti-virus)

Total Security (includes anti-virus and internet security)

Depending on your usage, check the softwares list of features and compare them. However it’s necessary for you to have Internet Security installed.

Use secured connection

This involves refraining from using public networks such as wifi’s at cafes, schools, parks, offices, etc since your data can be accessed by the public network owner.

Close all other unwanted stuff

Close all the applications you don’t need. I am not sure about the validity of this method but I do it just as a precautionary measure. Close all other browser windows/tabs, programs you don’t need since many of these communicate with their servers online.

Use virtual keyboard

Often hackers record mouse clicks and keystrokes on your computer. This method give away your information very easily since you have to type your credit card number and the security number and there is a pattern, for eg. first the credit card number, followed by the security/CVV code,  etc..

To counter this, use either virual keyboard provided on the payment gateway OR simply use the Windows On-Screen Keyboard! To open, go to All Programs > Accessories > Ease of Access > On-Screen Keyboard. Now as I mentioned earlier, even mouse clicks can be traced, however we can confuse the hacker with randomizing the input. Take this example, your credit card no. is 1234567890, let’s only consider a 10 digit number instead of 16 digit just for the sake of simplicity and understanding. Now what you do is that in the Credit card number field on the payment page, put 1235689. This is only to deceive the hacker, once you put that, click between 3 and 5 and put 4 and between 6 and 8 put 7, there if a good chance that the hacker might consider the number to be 123568947! Do the same for all other important fields.

Now that you have started online shopping,

Keep a regular check on your credit card statement for any unknown billings since it’s important to terminate your card if you detect any fraud. You can do so by checking your bank’s website OR signup for free SMS alert service offered by banks wherein you will be sent an SMS with the bill amount and the seller/store name whenever any purchases are made through your credit card. This allows you real-time tracking.

That’s all you need to know to be safe online. Happy Shopping  :D