SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – Cyber Monday is among us and while you’re online looking for the hottest deals and steals of the season, scammers are looking for steals too… but, in their case, it’s your personal information they’re after.
To protect your personal information and hard-earned money, the Better Business Bureau suggests online shoppers use a number of tactics to lower their risk of a cyber-attack, especially on Cyber Monday, one of the busiest online shopping days of the year.
Credit cards, rather than debit cards or wiring money, is the best option to use while shopping online, according to the BBC. This is due to the idea that if something skeptical were to take place, for example, a random charge on the card from a source unknown to you, you can fight the charge through the credit card company.
If an advertisement seems too good to be true, it probably is and it’s fake. While shopping online, watch the spelling of the online retailers websites you want to go to. Doppelgänger websites are just another way scammers are trying pry your personal information out of you and into their own hands.
One way to combat this is to make sure the website you’re on begins with https:// rather than http://, according to the BBB. The Bureau said the extra “s” means the web address is secured and is safe to use.
The BBB said the easiest way, arguably, to keep your personal information safe online is shopping on the retailers actual website, not a third-party site.
“I shop on the websites of the stores that I would shop in person,” said Yulyia Orlova, an avid online shopper since the pandemic began in early 2020.
But when she branches out and shops on smaller boutique websites every once in a while, she relies on the opinions and experiences of friends.
“I make sure that I have friends that have tried it out before me,” Orlova said.
On the other hand, Cole Bambini, a frequent user of Amazon Prime and other online retailers, isn’t afraid of cyber scammers.
“I’ve bought a lot of different things on a lot of different websites, not just on Amazon,” said Bambini. “I’ve used the same credit card or debt card and nothing’s ever happened. If something does happen, I can just cancel the card or anything like that, so I’m never worried.”
It’s easy to fall victim to phishing schemes and fraudulent advertisements put out by online scammers, because they look so official. By taking an extra second to read the fine print of an offer, or even avoiding unsolicited emails and texts altogether, it can save yourself, your wallet and a headache in the long run.
