Online shopping websites are more popular than ever. This popularity growth was even higher than anticipated because of the appearance of the coronavirus pandemic. Obviously, this also led to increased interest from cybercriminals.
Unwary consumers are oftentimes targeted. Every single person out there that wants to buy something online needs to think about shopping security. Fortunately, we do have access to different options when it comes to the security of our online shopping. Here are some of the best things that you can do to make online shopping more secure.
Be Careful When You Use Online Search
Most people use a search engine to look for items to buy. There is nothing wrong with that but you have to be careful. Search engines are nowadays very useful when it comes to looking for great prices, reviews, and products. However, without wanting to, you might click on a malicious link.
Dishonest site operators use black hat SEO and various other tactics to manipulate results in search engines. Sometimes, they even manage to buy ads for malicious links.
Avoid clicking on bad links by using a browser that includes a security check feature.
Use A Temporary Card
There are credit card companies that allow you to use temporary cards when you shop on the internet. These are wonderful for one-time purchases or just for dedicated online use. However, you cannot really use them when you buy something that requires regular payments or auto-renewal.
Set Up A Dedicated Shopping And Banking Computer
This offers a lot of added security. The idea is to set up a dedicated computer for shopping and online banking. This is practically the PC you use just for such purposes. You practically do everything related to money with this computer, ranging from actions like Skrill account verification to buying subscriptions.
The computer you use has to be clean. This means that it features all the security software needed and nothing extra except what you need for banking purposes. You do not use this computer to browse the internet, check your email or social networking.
Not everyone can afford to set up a dedicated shopping and banking computer. However, keep in mind that you do not need a really modern one. You can easily buy a very cheap one.
Use A Separate Email Address For Online Shopping
Just as with the dedicated computer, it is a very good idea to create an email address that you would only use for internet shopping in the future. This is very effective at helping you reduce the risk that you would open spam messages or malicious email messages. Oftentimes, such messages are disguised as notifications, including sales promotions. Because you would only utilize the email address to shop, it is close to impossible to have this problem.
Don’t Use Public WiFi
This is very easy to do. Never use a public WiFi connection to buy anything from the internet. Such connections are very easy to be hacked and when you use them, someone might watch everything you do. A hacker could easily access your online passwords and banking details.
