If online purchases occur without incident, in the vast majority of cases, some fraudsters take advantage of online purchases to hack consumers’ bank accounts and carry out fraudulent transactions without their knowledge. E-Complish gives you tips for shopping safely.
- Choose Double Security With Your Bank
Two precautions being better than one, use the double payment security now offered by most banks. In addition to the traditional visual cryptogram (generally a 3-digit code located behind your card), you can validate your payment online through a second step by entering a code your bank sends just after payment. This is usually a code sent by SMS that you must enter to confirm your order. Sometimes you also have to open your bank’s application on your smartphone to validate the transaction. Learn reasons Why Medium-Size Businesses Need an IVR System here.
Do You Know Virtual Bank Cards?
Some banks offer a service – usually free – of ” virtual bank card” or “e-credit card” for online purchases. The principle is simple: to make an online purchase, the bank provides you with a dematerialized bank card that you only use for this purchase. Like a classic card, it includes a bank card number, a verification code (CVV), and an expiration date. Since this card is only generated for a single purchase, this greatly limits the risk of piracy. Contact your bank to find out the terms and conditions if you are interested in this service.
- Check That The Page Is Secure
It is strongly recommended that you make your purchases on a website with “https” security: indeed, there are 2 types of websites. Those whose address begins with “http://” and those whose address begins with “https://.” Avoid shopping on “http://” sites, and do not create an account on a site when the url begins with “http://” because the information (password, personal information, banking information, etc.) can be intercepted by third parties (be careful, this condition is necessary, but not sufficient).
In addition, never share personal information (password, for example): no reliable site asks you for this type of information.
- Beware Of Unknown Sites And Overly Attractive Offers
- Some offers are sometimes too good to be true
- Don’t fall for alleged bargains without checking the site’s reputation first
- Read consumer ratings and reviews
- Beware of sites that offer a significantly lower price than their competitors
- Avoid Saving Your Bank Details
Think twice before storing your card number on your phone or computer. Some applications and internet browsers allow you to save your details, so you don’t have to retype them later.
- Beware Of Public Wifi Networks
For example, if you are connected to public wifi in a café, hotel, or train station, it is better not to enter your card number. A possible pirate can seize the opportunity of a poorly encrypted wifi to intercept some of your data”. Wait until you’re safer on a private network.
- Ensure Your Overall Digital Security
Even beyond the necessary vigilance, you must show when shopping online, being vigilant about your digital security daily will allow you to secure your payments even more. As such, following a few basic tips can be helpful:
Secure your computer terminal: regularly update your equipment, use an anti-virus and a firewall, secure your wifi access, etc.
Check your online bank account regularly: to check that no suspicious transactions have been made.
Secure your passwords: vary them, reserve each for single use, and create passwords that meet all the security conditions (use special characters, at least one capital letter, one number, etc.)
Securely use your e-mail: read the information in e-mails carefully, do not click on attachments or links that seem questionable, etc.