Chris Petty , managing director of Cornerstone Business Solutions , shares his tips for protecting your cybersecurity while shopping online …

spent more time behind our computers and one of the reasons Amazon is among the world ’ s biggest companies is because we have also taken to online shopping . Everything , as you all know , is available online .

We have talked about cybersecurity on your company ’ s network in the past but have not covered our normal day-to-day requirements – for example , shopping .

Whether it ’ s shopping for the festive period , the January sales or doing your weekly shop , I thought I ’ d offer some cybersecurity tips to try to make it an enjoyable and less scary experience .

1 . Make sure the website is secure .

The most important thing when entering your credit card details online is to make sure this data is sent securely . This means that instead of your browser just sending the 16-digit card number in the open it is encrypted , so no one sniffing network traffic can intercept it . There ’ s an easy way to check this in web browsers , which all have a way of showing you that a secure HTTPS connection has been made .

In general , web browsers display a padlock icon . Above you can see how this looks in Safari , Chrome and Firefox .

2 . Use Secure Passwords Most retail websites require you to create an account when you make your first purchase . You enter your name , address , phone number and payment information . The website then asks you to enter a password . Make sure to use a secure , unique password for each website . Don ’ t use the same password you use for other websites – if someone gets hold of that password by hacking one company ’ s servers , they ’ ll try to use it on other major merchants ’ websites . And if those websites have stored your credit card number , cybercriminals will be able to make purchases with your cash !

3 . Never shop over public wi-fi . Shopping while logged on to public wi-fi is one of the biggest mistakes you can make . Hackers and cyber-spies love hanging around unsecured networks and using public wi-fi to do online shopping is a sure way to get your credit card information stolen .

4 . Make purchases with credit cards instead of debit cards . Credit cards offer a safer way to shop than debit cards . Credit cards are not linked to your accounts , unlike debit cards . This means that even if your credit card information is stolen , the hacker won ’ t be able to access your other accounts .

Better still , use PayPal . I ’ m not pushing PayPal over other payment systems , but it does offer additional security . PayPal doesn ’ t send the credit card number to the website , it simply confirms that the payment was made . Just make sure that when you are sent to a PayPal payment page , it really is PayPal .

5 . Beware of unbelievably good offers . If you see an online offer that seems too good to be true , then it probably is . Avoid these offers at all cost as they are most likely attempts by cybercriminals to lure you in and steal your information . These scams have increased in number because crooks know especially in the current situation that we are all looking for the best deals we can get their hands on .

Online shopping is a safe and enjoyable experience for the majority of the time . Being careful will ensure you don ’ t have any unwanted experiences .

I ’ ve personally always preferred online shopping – no queues , no traffic jams , no bad weather and no long arms carrying lots of bags .

At the moment we don ’ t know which shops will be open , unfortunately , but we can be certain their e-commerce websites will be in full swing . So turn on your device , get comfy , pour yourself a glass of something nice and get shopping !

CORNERSTONE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LTD MAP HOUSE , 3 GEORGE STEPHENSON COURT , OFF WESTLAND WAY , PRESTON FARM , STOCKTON-ON-TEES , TS18 3TG

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