This holiday season – especially on Cyber Monday, traditionally the biggest online shopping day of the year – it’s just as important to be safe about sharing your credit card information as it is to find the prefect gift. Here’s how to protect your credit card information.
DO Look for https//: and security seals on any web site you shop on. Never enter your credit card information on a site that does not have a SSL (Secure Socket Layer) Certificate. This is an established way for online merchants to encrypt the data that gets sent on their web sites and ensure that your credit details don’t travel through the internet without getting coded. Many companies also display security seals or green bars across the top to show that they are encrypting your personal information.
DO Check the BBB reputation of any online merchant you have never seen before. The Better Business Bureau maintains a list of companies that have not complied with basic customer service guidelines. It is important to research the reputation of any company that you find on the web. In particular if you are shopping for something from an overseas company. Many US Federal Trade laws will not protect all purchases you make overseas and it will be more difficult for American authorities and American credit card companies to follow up on complains with companies overseas.
DON’T Give out your credit card information over email or store it on an unsecure thumb drive or document on your computer or smartphone. It is much easier for a hacker to steal your credit card information if it is in an email or in a word document. Unless you encrypt an email it is easy for it to be intercepted and read. Never email your credit information and be wary if you receive a receipt or confirmation from a merchant with your full credit card details.
DON’T Store credit card number on any autocomplete forms in your web browser While it may seem like a short cut to store your credit card information in a autocomplete program, this is another place that identity thief’s can attack for your personal financial information. Always re-enter your credit card info new and never save the number in your web browser.
DO Get a free credit check after you have done a lot of online shopping Consumer credit companies offer once a year credit checks to consumers. If you plan on doing a lot of online shopping on Cyber Monday it is a good idea to follow up with a free credit check to make sure that there are no surprises. The earlier you catch a credit card thief the sooner you can cancel your card by informing your credit card company.
DO Save your online shopping receipts and check for any errors in your credit card statement.
DON’T Forget that your credit card carries protections on your purchase. Check with your credit card company policy to learn your right when it comes to full refunds on returned or damaged goods.
DON’T forward any receipts or other sensitive data via email to friends and loved ones. If you must forward, always remove any potentially sensitive financial information. Emails can easily be intercepted by hackers and other malicious online predators.
