Let’s face it – holiday shopping is a pain in the…well, it’s a pain. No one enjoys the crowded stores, the traffic, rude shoppers, unhelpful store employees…we’d just all rather not shop during the holidays.
This is why online shopping is such a convenience. You can buy your gifts online and have them delivered to your door – in some cases, you can even have them delivered already wrapped.
But shopping online is a double-edged sword. Cyber shoppers must be sharp, especially during the holiday season, because criminals are aware that everyone is rushing around with a million things to do, much less mindful of being cautious. And while most shoppers are just dusting off their credit cards to start their shopping, criminals are already hard at work to take advantage of the season’s hurried pace.
The National Retail Federation said that last year during the holiday season, 96.5 million Americans shopped online on Cyber Monday, while 79 million actually went to the stores on Black Friday.
Be safe as you shop this season – here are some safe shopping rules to help:
• If it’s took good to be true, it probably is. Web sites that offer unbelievable prices for luxury items or hard-to-find toys after they have sold out at retailers may not be legitimate. Never wire money to a seller. Shop locally and be sure you get what you pay for.
Scammers are also looking to get you with phishing, an e-mail that appears to be from a trusted source. Don’t open the e-mail until you are sure it’s safe. Check for e-mail or Web site addresses that don’t match up, and typos and grammatical errors, which are common red flags for phishing e-mails. E-mails that come to you from a company you have never dealt with are also suspicious.
• Scammers have been known to conduct fraudulent auction sales, reship merchandise purchased with stolen credit cards, and sell fraudulent or stolen gift cards through auction sites at discounted prices.
• Don’t fill out forms seeking personal information that are sent through e-mail. Any e-mail that urges you to act quickly or claims there is an emergency is likely a scam.
• Never give anyone your Social Security number, date of birth or other personal information when buying a gift card. A legitimate retailer would not need it or ask for it.
• Don’t lose track of your wallet. Keep your credit and debit cards close and cover up the keypad when you punch in your PIN at the cash machine or at a register.
The bottom line is this: don’t allow the holiday rush to take over and make you careless. You can’t afford to get your crabby Aunt Betty an ugly sweater, and you can’t afford to give criminals a chance to ruin your credit and clean out your bank account.
