Pay Safe

The year gone by saw several incidents of credit card data theft. Hacker group Anonymous brought big corporations like Sony down to their knees. They recently stole credit card data from websites,and used that to make charitable donations. Such websites have your credit card information and your password. There isnt much one can do about security loopholes in them,but one can follow a few safety measures while shopping online.

Use the good old padlock

Look for the padlock symbol in your browser while making transactions,and make sure that the web address of the payment page starts with https. The s after http means that the website has an added layer of protection. Also,type the address instead of clicking on a link to it.

Go for the familiar

As far as possible,shop only from familiar websites. Check online reviews and ask peers about their experiences. Besides prices on offer,factors such as delivery time and after-sales service should also be considered while deciding on an online store to shop from. It is better to choose the cash-on-delivery option when ordering from unfamiliar websites.

Power that password

On almost all online stores,your username is your email ID. For safety,many shoppers set different passwords for their email and store accounts,and avoid storing too much personal data on these sites. In case your favourite e-store is hacked,thieves will have access to a lot of that data. Passwords with a mix of capital and small letters,numbers and symbols are the strongest. Also,using virtual keyboards provided by banking sites helps keep away from viruses that record keystrokes. Alternatively,keying in keystrokes in a jumbled fashion also helps. For example,if your password is abcdefg,type acg first,then use arrow keys to move back and forth,and type the remaining characters.

Rely on middlemen

Websites like eBay offer buyers added protection in the form of reliable middlemen like Escrow or PaisaPay. When you make a payment,the money goes to these middlemen instead of the seller. Once you receive the product and check it,you approve the transaction. Only then does the seller get the money. Although this means you have to shell out a bit more,you do have the assurance that you will not be sold a fake product.

Guard that card