Don't Shop Publicly
If you plan to do any shopping online, do it at home.
At home, you can shop in your pajamas and at any
time of the day or night. You also know who accesses
your computer at home. If you're using a public computer to do your
shopping—at the library, at a cyber café, or at work—you have no control
over who might be using that network as well. You also don't have any
control over what kind of spyware or malware might be infecting that
computer. So just don't do it. Shop at home. It's much safer.
Don't Store Information Elsewhere
Many shopping sites, such as Amazon.com's OneClick
shopping, offer you the ability to save your credit card
information on their servers to speed the shopping process.
It's definitely faster, but there are some risks to maintaining your personal
information elsewhere. If a company that you're shopping with has a data
breach, your personal information could be put at risk. It takes a little
longer, but instead of storing your information on a server over which you
have no control, just enter it yourself each time you shop.
Price and selection are two of the best benefits to shopping online. But
don't let the benefits lull you into complacency. Take the time to shop
securely, and use caution with the sites where you choose to shop. Then,
not only can you find great deals, but you can do it without the worry that
your identity will be stolen in the process.
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