Shopping online is usually quite safe, but unless you’re used to it and know what to look for you can never be sure. Newbies even sometimes decide to shun shopping online, just to be extra safe. How do you know that the place you’re ordering from isn’t just a fraudulent company? The truth is, you don’t have to stop shopping online; simply take note of these 5 important tips to stay safe and you can enjoy online shopping whenever you like, safe in the knowledge that you’re not being conned:
Research Sites And Sellers
Before buying something from a site or seller you’ve never heard of before, make sure you do your own research. Try to find reviews on the web to see what other customers thought (not on the company’s own site), and take note of addresses and phone numbers so you can contact somebody if a transaction seems to go wrong.
Make Sure The Site Is Secure
You should make sure a site is legitimate before entering any of your information. You can do this by taking a look at the URL; if it starts with ‘https’ the site is secured. You can also look for a locked padlock on your browsers address bar.
Protect Your Personal Info
You can protect your personal information in a number of ways; make sure you only fill out required fields on a form you have to fill out, and read the company’s privacy policy so you know how your information will be stored and used. Make sure that the information you’re being asked to provide is necessary to make the purchase!
Use The Safe Payment Option
PayPal is usually the safest payment option, so make an account with them and pay using their method wherever possible. All you need to remember is your email address and password, and PayPal will do the rest, keeping your information safe. For larger purchases, you could even use a credit card, as they offer a certain amount of protection.
Print Your Receipts
By printing and saving records of your online transactions, you can keep yourself as protected as possible. By making sure you have information such as the product, price, and terms of sale, if you notice any unauthorised charges you can sort it out with your bank straight away.
The 5 tips above will help you to stay as safe as possible when shopping online, and in conjunction with those you can also try:
- Keeping your computer up to date with the latest protection software.
- Making strong, long passwords with letters, numbers, and upper/lower case.
- Having different passwords for all of your accounts.
Now that you feel more comfortable, you can also save when shopping online by searching for voucher/coupon codes to use with certain sites, like Amazon. You can save a load of money, and keep yourself safe while doing it with the information above. Now you can enjoy the convenience of online shopping with peace of mind…enjoy!