Online Shopping: 5 Effective Tips To Ensure A Safe Experience
The Internet has made a lot of things easier in today’s world, and shopping is one of them. Now, with just one click, you have the luxury and comfort of having your needs delivered to your doorstep. This sort of convenience helps you avoid the time-consuming nature of in-store shopping and other little hitches. It’s no surprise that every year, the number of users buying things online increases. In Africa, for instance, there were 281 million online buyers in 2020; this is expected to rise to 520 million by 2025.
However, as appealing as all these sounds, online shopping is more than getting the best prices and delivering your orders straight to your door. Getting your things online also involves avoiding scammers. The past few years have witnessed a surge in global fraud and e-commerce scams, and online shoppers are losing money online now more than ever. To help you stay safe while shopping online, we’ve compiled five effective tips for you. Dig in!
Verifying the authenticity of a seller is a vital first step in safeguarding your online purchases. Go with trustworthy e-commerce sites and partnerships with well-known retailers if you prefer to buy on sites offering a wide selection of products. These platforms typically include authentic brand microsites, so you can be confident you're receiving the real thing.
Limited offers are a common tactic these fraudulent vendors use to entice you into making a questionable purchase by creating a sense of urgency. You should acquaint yourself with the signs that confirm a vendor's legitimacy. It could be that their user interface has grammar issues or images of lower quality. Check their company information, social media presence and customer reviews. All these can sell a fraudulent vendor out.
2. Give promo offers a thorough check
A lot of people like freebies or discounted prices. Online shoppers aren’t an exception. This is why scammers bait and switch consumers with the promise of these exciting deals.
As a security measure, avoid discounts from any website offering coupons or freebies that look like a big-box retailer. You should also watch out for websites that request you fill out a lengthy profile with a lot of private information.
3. Use secure online systems
When making purchases online, secure systems offer an additional line of protection. Installing trustworthy antivirus software, to begin with, will shield you against ransomware, malware, and hackers while also protecting your browsing and sending you real-time notifications when you visit websites that might be dangerous.
Before giving out any personal or financial information, make sure you know how the information will be used and stored. Also, remember to use secure passwords when registering on e-commerce websites and to avoid using the same password across many accounts.
Don't give an online vendor any personal information they don't need to fulfill your orders. Your ID number and birthday are probably unnecessary for a seller to fulfill your order, but they are pieces of information that could be used to steal your identity.
4. Be wary of strange payment methods
Entering your card details through a secure channel is typically the conventional procedure for making payments for items online. Scammers attempt to get around this by sending you to portals under their direct control. These vendors might email you links and tell you to click on them to finish your transaction. Afterwards, you are taken to a fake payment website where your card information is collected maliciously.
Malware can infect your phone when you click on these URLs. Don't dismiss an unfamiliar app that shows up on your device! Malware is most likely the cause.
5. Have a designated credit card
Credit cards are effective when it comes to buying things online. They typically provide superior fraud protection and carry no liability for fraudulent transactions. Debit cards typically don't offer the same degree of security. In addition, losing your bank account information to a scammer compromises your complete debit card information, which is a much more serious issue than just losing money.
However, you can avoid all these and shop online more conveniently and safely with a card created just for online shopping. This way, you can allocate particular funds for this use and shop without worrying that your finances will be compromised.
With Timon, you can create a virtual card, especially for online payments, and shop with the security of a reliable credit card and the ease of having your online purchases on one card.
Shop Safely Online With Timon
Many things come with risks, and online transactions are no exception. However, the good news is that you can reduce it significantly using the tips above. In addition to those tips, you should choose a card provider like Timon that boasts multiple security layers.
No matter where you are, our Physical and virtual cards help you shop safely without the fear of getting your money stolen. Our app also ensures you can easily create virtual cards and track expenses. Order your Timon card today and start shopping without worries.