Online shopping has now become a norm among consumers. But if you do not take the necessary precautions, you put yourself at risk. If you do not know where to shop or what kind of information to share, you put yourself in harm’s way.
This is why regardless if you are ordering custom cabinets for your new home or buying dental instruments online for your new clinic, you have to know how to shop on the internet safely. Here are some powerful tips for protecting your information as you shop.
Create Strong Passwords
Your password serves as your first line of defense against hacking, breaches, and leakages. It is only logical that you create a strong one that is hard to crack. Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to use a 14-character password for it to be strong. Sometimes, even the longest passwords are easy enough to crack, especially if the characters are mostly lowercase letters.
To create a strong password, it is best to adopt a mixture of uppercase and lowercase alphanumeric characters seasoned with special symbols. In this way, the complexity of your password is a lot stronger than good old normal ones. This makes it harder for hackers to infiltrate the database where your information is stored.
Shop from Secured Websites
Among the most common mistakes consumers commit when shopping online is going to unsecured or questionable sites. Nowadays, websites are categorized if safe or not. It is easy to identify, especially since they are marked secured or safe in your browser.
Nevertheless, when shopping online, always look at the URL of the page. You will know if it is secured if the URL starts with HTTPS instead of HTTP. In other browsers, a locked padlock icon also appears. This is a symbol or a mark that proves a website has secured content.
Monitor Your Bank Statement
Monitoring your bank statement is as easy as pie. After all, banks have implemented online banking, wherein you can check the status of your account anywhere and anytime. When shopping online, it is important to closely monitor your bank statement for any unusual activities or spending.
This is one good way to spot if your information has been compromised. Keep in mind that this should be done regularly, so you can inform your bank about any issues as soon as possible.
Use Private Wi-Fi
Online shopping is best done when you are connected to a private network. Utilizing a publicly shared Wi-Fi when shopping online may result in your information being leaked to other connectors and users.
You should only use a privatized network connection, especially when you have to share sensitive information such as credit card PINs and bank account numbers.
Online shopping does give consumers an easier and more convenient way of making purchases. However, there are risks in doing so. It always pays to be cautious. Remember that you are the one responsible for your protection online, so it is your job to do everything to keep your information safe.
