Black Friday. Small Business Saturday. Cyber Monday.
The “most wonderful time of the year” is once again upon us, the holidays. As the holiday season gets underway, many will turn to online to find that perfect gift for their someone special. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, the number of people logging on and shopping dramatically increased, and those habits remain as we begin returning to our “normal” lives and get out and about. As we turn on our computers, fire up our smartphones and start shopping, there are a few things to remember to keep you safe during your time online.
Yair Levy, Ph.D.
One of the best tips is, if you can, to have a credit card that is dedicated for your online shopping and have other cards to use when you are not shopping online (gas, groceries, etc.). Also, set up SMS and email notifications when new online purchases are made so you know immediately if someone is using your credit card fraudulently. There is no bulletproof solution, but the multi-credit card system is more secure. I’d even suggest activating the instant notifications on all your credit cards – better to be safe than sorry. If any credit card is compromised, report it to the company to it can be deactivated and you can get a new card.
When shopping online, verify a secured connection by looking for a little padlock in the browser address bar. If you don’t see that, verify an encrypted connection, or Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secured (HTTPS), by making sure the Web address starts with “https://” (the “s” stands for secured). Think of it this way: HTTP is like a postcard – anyone can read it when you transmit; HTTPS is like putting the letter in an envelope.
While it may seem convenient, if you are away from your trusted network (i.e. your own home network), I strongly urge you not to use free Wi-Fi on your mobile device – use your own data plan. You can’t afford to be cheap when it comes to cybersecurity – you’ll eventually get bitten by fraudsters. Cyber crooks name their network something familiar, like Fort Lauderdale Airport or Starbucks and then get you to connect as a guest so they can see into your device. They add malware or a key-logger that capture all the keys you type on your device (even a smartphone) and then when you shop or log into your bank account, they record your sensitive personal information and passwords.
Finally, it is important to know that criminals get credit card and personal information mainly through phishing email scams. These are bogus emails masquerading as trustworthy retailers like Amazon, Walmart and others by offering huge discounts or even as financial institutions alerting you for “suspicious activity” on your account. Never, EVER click on links provided in an email to make a purchase or access your financial institution. Instead, go to the site independently (such as via bookmark or favorites) to verify the offer or coupon code or activity. If the deal seems too good to be true, it likely is! Also, be suspicious of the top links appearing on your search engine results; our research found many cases where these “ad” links that appears on top maybe injected by cyber criminals causing you to get ransomware or other malware.
If you’re looking for additional information, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offers useful and practical information online (StopThinkConnect.org). Another good resource is the National Cyber Security Alliance at StaySafeOnline.org. Also, If you are a victim of cybercrime or get suspicious phishing emails, report them to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov and the FTC’s IdentityTheft.gov (https://www.identitytheft.gov) center. The site posts alerts on data breaches and emerging internet crime schemes.
By taking some simple steps, remembering that there’s no such thing as a free lunch and relying on your common sense can keep you safe online during the holiday season.
Happy Holidays!
