Listening to our local news the other day, I got wind of some great online shopping tips that will help minimize our risks of being ripped off as we go about making our online buys. We’ve actually been using these tips already, but they’re a great reminder nevertheless for those of us getting ready for this busy retail season.
Image from wral.com
5 Online Shopping Tips To Help You Shop Safely
1. Consider shopping only at reputable sites.
I typically shop at only a few places, including Ebates, Amazon and a few stores which I favor for their catalogs. You’ll vastly limit your risks by sticking to sites you know and trust well. For those interested in receiving cash back rewards when you shop, check out my Ebates review.
2. Use one special email address for all your shopping correspondence.
So why didn’t I think of this before going off and giving away my personal email address to a whole bunch of online retailers? Now I’m paying for this oversight with massive doses of spam that I’ve had to filter out of my inbox. Well, you can save yourself this trouble by creating a unique email address that you use specifically for online shopping. You’ll get your orders recorded in one place and you won’t mind the offers that are sent to you to this special address since it’s not mixed with all your other important mail.
3. Designate one credit card for all the shopping you do.
Again, the less information you expose online, the better. Sticking to one credit card for your e-shopping pursuits will allow you to limit any issues to that one credit card. While most ecommerce and online shopping sites are safe and secure to use, there is still that slight chance of being victimized by unscrupulous scammers, hackers or phishers. So limit your vulnerability to that one card.
4. Make sure your computer environment is secure.
If you’ve got an internet connection, then you’ll need to ensure that you’ve got computer security software installed. Protect your computer from any kind of hack attack with anti-virus software and by being highly aware of online scams that can part you from your money. Equip your computers with the right products.
5. Be wary of online schemes.
The more you know about the scams that abound and the more wary you are, the safer you’ll be. Check out these additional ways to shop safely.
Happy shopping!
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
#3 is key for me. It’s also a lot easier to manage your bills when all of your online shopping expenses are conveniently in one place.
This is a bit off-topic, but applies to ecommerce nevertheless, that is why I am so wary of furnishing any kind of details over the internet. Even if you bought into something bona-fide, these critters hit you with rebilling every month, even if you’ve canceled. That is a great issue with me. So beware of signing up for trial offers and money back guarantee offers, because you’ll usually have issues canceling the trial and/or getting your money back.
The main thing is to go to the website yourself, not to access it through an email you receive. THAT is a way that the scammers get to us!
John DeFlumeri Jr
Buying online is so common these days, and you definitely want to be very careful when you do transactions online, not just by buying but any type of transaction that involves personal identification.
I agree with this posting 100%. I shopped at some sketchy sites to buy glasses and I hated the product I got. Now I shop at eyeglasses.com and I like them a lot. The glasses I got were sooo nice. Make sure you watch out where you shop.
I almost never buy anything to wear or anything where the look is important online. I try to find the best prices on the well known sites.