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What do you prefer while shopping? Long Queues? Limited collections and sizes? Certainly, no. That’s why online shopping is the trend of the day. Supportingly, current market statistics show a meteoric rise of online shoppers over the last 6 years. Appallingly, data security has always been an issue for online shoppers and hackers do love security loopholes in online transactions.
This article is all about those simple, yet extremely handy tips, applying which you can make your every online transaction safe and secure.
Tip1: Go for known E-commerce Store
It’s a standard and the best practice.
Established e-commerce stores like Amazon, Flipkart are the safest places for online shopping as they always maintain the latest web security standards, and always practice a combat-ready approach towards cyber crimes. Moreover, even if you save your personal details in your accounts, they make it sure that your personal data remains secure there.
Tip 2: Choose HTTPS over HTTP
Before executing any sort of a financial transaction with a brand new e-commerce site, check for these technical points. Firstly, check the web address of the page you are viewing on your browser. Does the address start with HTTPS or HTTP?
While making any financial transaction on the web, always choose HTTPS over HTTP. Web address which starts with ‘HTTPS’ uses a secure socket layer(SSL) for any kind of transaction made on that website. SSL is one of the latest standard web security layers, which encrypts every data bits when a set of data swings between its database and a web browser. That means when you make a financial transaction with that website, your personal data travels through a secure path and remains concealed and integral.
Secondly, another important factor is the pop-up boxes that float on the web pages asking for your personal information. Never, ever share your personal and financial data with such kind of web services. It’s a verifiable fact that standard and professional e-commerce sites never ask you for your sensitive data.
Tip 3: Use Online Payment Services
Always prefer online payment services like PayPal for your financial transactions, as these offer an extra security layer to those transactions.
Let’s consider this. You are purchasing a good from an e-commerce store and unknowingly you have missed the fact that some malicious program is waiting eagerly behind that gentle appearing web page to steal your credit card’s information. Immediately, after making that transaction, you may receive a message from your credit card service provider that a large amount of money has just vanished from your account. Online Payment systems have the potential to save you from this nightmare.
Admittedly, with the rise of online shopping, these types of cyber-crimes are looming up. Now, online payment systems maintain a strong security layer for locating these types of malware and prevent them from stealing your personal data. So, using online payment systems for making a financial transaction overusing your credit/debit cards directly is always a safer approach.
Tip 4: Create Super-Strong Passwords
While creating a personal account on any e-commerce store, it is strongly recommended that you go with a sturdy password. When the password is concerned, lengthier is merrier. For any web account, create a strong alpha-numeric password.
Evidently, don’t use your personal details like name, birth date, mobile number while creating a password as these will make your passwords more predictable hence, less secure. Use special characters with a long enough alpha-numeric string for making your passwords stronger.
Tip 5: Avoid Using Unprotected/ Public Wi-Fi
It’s a no-brainer. Right?
You will not stand a chance to prevent hackers from playing with your financial data with a casual approach like using public cyber shops while purchasing goods online. Firstly, you wouldn’t have any idea about the web security of any public cyber shops. Public computers can contain hidden malware’s like ‘keylogger’ or else and these can steal everything by following your key impressions. Moreover, if it uses a Wi-Fi network, you will have to find out whether the network is using any kind of security layer for data transmissions.
Secondly, after using a public cafe if you forget to log out from your accounts before leaving the same, I bet you have the idea about the possible consequences of it.
Thirdly, if you think that making an online transaction is safe on your own laptop while using a public Wi-Fi network, you are dead wrong. Public Wi-Fi networks are the mouth-watering spots for hackers. As most of the public Wi-Fi networks run without any sort of security layer and it’s a painless task for any mediocre hacker to get into the network and clutch your every data you are transmitting through that network.
So, it’s a big no for transferring your sensitive data over an unprotected public Wi-Fi network. In such scenarios, only go for virtual private networks(VPN). Even at home, password protect your own Wi-Fi network before stepping into any online transaction.
Technology is evolving and getting more complicated, but at the same time, hackers are also getting smarter. Eventually, they will find a way to harm your financials if you leave a single loose end in your security, but it’s for sure that these tips will help you to stay on the right track. So, what’s your take on this? Do share with us.
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