Hello

Secure your PC: The first thing you need to do is be sure your computer is secure. Trend Micro's education director David Perry, says that "bad guys these days are operating by planting a keylogger on your system that listens in, surreptitiously waiting for you to use your credit card or your bank password so that they can steal your money." So, even if you're dealing with a legitimate merchant, you're at risk if your computer is infected. Your best protection from these attacks is to keep your operating system and browsers updated and use a good and up-to-date security program. If you're getting or giving a Netbook or other PC for the holidays, make sure that security software is installed right away. Most security companies offer a free-trial version that will tide you over for a month or so, but be sure to subscribe so you get ongoing protection.

Click with care: You're going to be getting a lot of offers via e-mail this holiday season. While they might be legitimate, there is the possibility of some offers coming from criminals trying to trick you into giving your password to a rogue site or visiting a site that can put malicious software on your computer. Your best protection is to not click on any links - even if the message looks legitimate - but to type in the merchant's URL manually.

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HI
Know the real price: Be sure you understand the actual cost of the item, including shipping, handling, and sales tax. That can have an enormous impact on the final price. Many merchants are offering free shipping during the holidays and some merchants that have both online physical stores will let you pick up the item in the store for free. In most states if you do business with a merchant that has a physical presence in your state, the merchant is required to collect state sales taxes. Although it's tough to enforce, some states expect you to self-report all of your online purchases and pay sales taxes when you file your state income tax return.

Happy returns: Be sure you understand the merchant's return policies including the deadline for returns and what documentation you'll need. In most cases, they won't refund the shipping charges and you'll have to pay to ship it back. Always keep your packing until you're sure you're not going to return it.

Read the privacy policy: The policy, according to the American Bar Association's Safeshopping.org, should disclose "what information the seller is gathering about you, how the seller will use this information; and whether and how you can "opt out" of these practices."


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Hi

Happy returns: Be sure you understand the merchant's return policies including the deadline for returns and what documentation you'll need. In most cases, they won't refund the shipping charges and you'll have to pay to ship it back. Always keep your packing until you're sure you're not going to return it.

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1. Bigger names equal better protection.
"Go with reputable companies you've heard of," says Jim Stickley, co-founder, CTO and vice president of engineering at TraceSecurity, a company that works with financial institutions to better their network security systems to deter identity thieves.

Stickley, who knows firsthand how easily sensitive information is stolen, says that if a deal sounds too good to be true -- say, $20 for an iPod Nano -- it probably is. What's worse, it's probably an attempt to trick you into giving out personal information.

Steven Branigan, founder and president of CyanLine and author of "High Tech Crimes Revealed" agrees and says that it's good to know the site you're going to, such as the bigger sites like Amazon.com. "These sites put their name on the line."

On the other hand, the fear factor hurts smaller merchants who might have better deals.

One comparison shopping site, buysafeshopping.com, solves both problems by bonding qualified merchants for up to $25,000 with Liberty Mutual, Travelers and ACE USA. BuySAFE puts merchants through a screening process to verify the merchant's identity, online sales experience and ability to deliver the purchased items. If a retailer passes that process, buySAFE is willing to stand behind them with its purse, says Jeff Grass, CEO and president, and Rob Caskey, senior director of buyer marketing.

2. When in doubt, check them out.
If you go with an unknown merchant or Web site, contact someone there who can verify the company's privacy policy for you before you make a purchase. Ask if they'll send you a catalog. "If they don't list phone numbers and only have an e-mail address, that's a huge red flag," Stickley says. "Call the phone number and see if it goes to voice mail. Anyone can have voice mail set up." Bottom line: If you can't get a human being on the phone or don't like what you're hearing, go shopping somewhere else.

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hello
The Internet security experts we spoke with say "yes" -- on the condition that consumers abide by some basic safety tips.

1. Bigger names equal better protection.
"Go with reputable companies you've heard of," says Jim Stickley, co-founder, CTO and vice president of engineering at TraceSecurity, a company that works with financial institutions to better their network security systems to deter identity thieves.
2. When in doubt, check them out.
If you go with an unknown merchant or Web site, contact someone there who can verify the company's privacy policy for you before you make a purchase. Ask if they'll send you a catalog.
3. Encryption doesn't equal security.
Leah Ingram, author of "Gifts Anytime: How to Find the Perfect Present for any Occasion," is a certified etiquette and protocol consultant. This expert gift-giver says one of the first things you should do before typing in your credit card information is look for the "plural URL." That is, when you go to the site's checkout page, the "http" in the URL should change to "https." A closed padlock or key should also appear on the page, letting you know your personal information will be encrypted or scrambled.
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Hi

Shopping online does carry some risk, but so does shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. At least online shoppers don't need to worry about fender-benders in the parking lot, pick pockets at the mall, or getting the flu from all those fellow shoppers.

But the nice thing about shopping online is that by following some basic guidelines you can be reasonably sure you'll have a safe experience.

Secure your PC: The first thing you need to do is be sure your computer is secure. Trend Micro's education director David Perry, says that "bad guys these days are operating by planting a keylogger on your system that listens in, surreptitiously waiting for you to use your credit card or your bank password so that they can steal your money." So, even if you're dealing with a legitimate merchant, you're at risk if your computer is infected. Your best protection from these attacks is to keep your operating system and browsers updated and use a good and up-to-date security program. If you're getting or giving a Netbook or other PC for the holidays, make sure that security software is installed right away. Most security companies offer a free-trial version that will tide you over for a month or so, but be sure to subscribe so you get ongoing protection.

Click with care: You're going to be getting a lot of offers via e-mail this holiday season. While they might be legitimate, there is the possibility of some offers coming from criminals trying to trick you into giving your password to a rogue site or visiting a site that can put malicious software on your computer. Your best protection is to not click on any links--even if the message looks legitimate--but to type in the merchant's URL manually.

Know the merchant: : If you're not familiar with the merchant, do a little research like typing its name (and perhaps the word "scam") into a search engine to see if there are any reports of scams. Look for user reviews on sites like Eopinions.com. Look for seller ratings if you locate the merchant through a shopping search engine like Google Shopping . Google doesn't certify the integrity of the sites that come up in its searches, but if you see lots of seller ratings that are mostly positive, that's a pretty good sign. You're generally pretty safe with sellers that are affiliated with shopping aggregators like Amazon.com, Yahoo Shopping, Retrevo or BizRate. Microsoft's new Bing search engine offers a cash-back program with affiliated merchants.

Thanks

Hi
Shopping online does carry some risk, but so does shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. At least online shoppers don't need to worry about fender-benders in the parking lot, pick pockets at the mall, or getting the flu from all those fellow shoppers.

But the nice thing about shopping online is that by following some basic guidelines you can be reasonably sure you'll have a safe experience.

Secure your PC: The first thing you need to do is be sure your computer is secure. Trend Micro's education director David Perry, says that "bad guys these days are operating by planting a keylogger on your system that listens in, surreptitiously waiting for you to use your credit card or your bank password so that they can steal your money." So, even if you're dealing with a legitimate merchant, you're at risk if your computer is infected. Your best protection from these attacks is to keep your operating system and browsers updated and use a good and up-to-date security program. If you're getting or giving a Netbook or other PC for the holidays, make sure that security software is installed right away. Most security companies offer a free-trial version that will tide you over for a month or so, but be sure to subscribe so you get ongoing protection.

Click with care: You're going to be getting a lot of offers via e-mail this holiday season. While they might be legitimate, there is the possibility of some offers coming from criminals trying to trick you into giving your password to a rogue site or visiting a site that can put malicious software on your computer. Your best protection is to not click on any links--even if the message looks legitimate--but to type in the merchant's URL manually.

Know the merchant: : If you're not familiar with the merchant, do a little research like typing its name (and perhaps the word "scam") into a search engine to see if there are any reports of scams.

Thanks

Hi

Secure your PC: The first thing you need to do is be sure your computer is secure. Trend Micro's education director David Perry, says that "bad guys these days are operating by planting a keylogger on your system that listens in, surreptitiously waiting for you to use your credit card or your bank password so that they can steal your money." So, even if you're dealing with a legitimate merchant, you're at risk if your computer is infected. Your best protection from these attacks is to keep your operating system and browsers updated and use a good and up-to-date security program. If you're getting or giving a Netbook or other PC for the holidays, make sure that security software is installed right away. Most security companies offer a free-trial version that will tide you over for a month or so, but be sure to subscribe so you get ongoing protection.

Click with care: You're going to be getting a lot of offers via e-mail this holiday season. While they might be legitimate, there is the possibility of some offers coming from criminals trying to trick you into giving your password to a rogue site or visiting a site that can put malicious software on your computer. Your best protection is to not click on any links - even if the message looks legitimate - but to type in the merchant's URL manually.

Thanks

Shopping online is one of the most convenient ways of finding unique products. However, there are risks in shopping online.




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