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Shop Online Safely – Online shopping has become increasingly popular over the last few years. With shopping centres often being cramped and busy, the cold and rainy weather and the hassle of leaving the comfort of your home, there’s no wonder people are turning more and more to shopping online.

Online shopping comes with a long list of benefits. Better prices, online only deals, more stock, wider variety, no pressure and so much more. However, just like everything in life, it has its disadvantages. Some of these include, frauds, delayed delivery, technical problems, vulnerability and more.

You don’t want to have to go through the inconvenience of having your banking details stolen so let’s take a look at how to stay safe when making online purchases.

1. Make sure the website is secure
   You can check if a website is secure by looking at the web address. It should read ‘https‘ if the website is safe to make an online purchase. The ‘S’ is the most important part as it stands for ‘Secure’. You should also see a padlock in the address bar which is an indication that the site is safe as it uses what’s called an SSL (secure socket layer) certificate. If the web address says ‘http’ the website won’t have an SSL certificate, therefore, is not safe.
2. Beware with ‘free trials’
   Often you may be asked to enter your card details even though it claims that it’s a free offer. This is usually because after the trial finishes they will start to take payments out of your account.
3. Log out of your account after you have finished paying
   Log out and then close the page to ensure the session is finished and no-one can access your information.
4. Keep a look-out for fake websites
   Every year we see fake website cloned to look like popular branded websites. If you’re unsure of a site’s exact web address, always ask someone who works in the store or phone their head office to double check. Fake websites will tend to look like the real deal but, there may be a slight difference in spelling mistake in the web address which can easily be missed. Look for address details and a contact number, as often fake websites don’t have them. Give them a call and see if they answer.
5. Look at reviews
   If you’re ordering from a website that you haven’t heard of before, ensure that you check reviews. This will help you determine whether to continue with your purchase. Look for reviews that are describing the quality, delivery time and cost. If they don’t have online reviews, they probably popped up very recently.
6. Unexpected emails should not be opened
   There are a lot of spam and fraudulent emails claiming to be the bank attempting to get you to ‘verify’ your details. Don’t fall for scams like this. If an email has an attachment or you don’t recognise the sender, simply don’t risk opening them.
7. Use anti-virus software
   Using anti-virus software helps prevent things like key stroke software downloading to your computer that can then steal personal details such as credit card details and bank log in credentials.
8. Check bank statements often
   Take a look at your bank statements regularly to ensure that all transactions made are ones that you are aware of.
9. Use a credit card or PayPal
   It is a much safer option to pay with a credit card or PayPal as opposed to your debit card as you have recourse if anything goes wrong.
10. Only shop on trusted websites
    Try to use websites that you have purchased from before to try to avoid any nasty surprises.

We hope that this blog has given you some ideas to stay safe and enjoy your online shopping!

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