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Online Shopping Tips

Keep your money safe this holiday season.

December 16, 2014
There's nothing worse during the holiday shopping season than to realize your credit card account has been hacked. Not only are you left stranded without your credit card for (sometimes) weeks, you may have to wait until your bank finishes its investigation to get the stolen money put back into your account. This can leave you without the funds you need to purchase gifts for your family and mess up automatic bill-pay accounts you have arranged. 

Keep your credit safe this holiday season by following a few online credit safety tips:

  • Link your bank account or credit card to a third-party processor like PayPal or Google Account to avoid having to enter your account numbers into forms. 
  • Make sure your computer security software is kept updated. 
  • Use the credit, rather than debit option when making online purchases. If your account is hacked, it will be easier to get refunded. 
  • Designate one credit card for online purchases only. This makes it easier to keep track of your spending and catch and report discrepancies in the account. 
  • Shop only on sites that have an "s" after "http" in the beginning of the url. This means your financial information is protected and secure. 
  • Avoid clicking on pop-up ads or any content that requires you to give personal information about yourself. These forms often contain malware that can allow your computer to send personal information to outside sources (hackers), who may use this information to steal from you. 
  • Keep your credit card number to yourself! Don't let your kids use your card for online sites or purchases. Insist on entering the number yourself, and never store the number on the computer.