Safe Shopping Online 1: Make Sure Your Transactions are Secure!

Many Online Merchants Will Also Offer a Phone-In Option:
Would you rather give your credit card information over the phone? Many web merchants allow you to order online and give your credit card information over the phone. If you're more comfortable with this phone-in option, be sure to make a written note of the phone number, the full company name, the date and time of your call, and the full name of the person who took down your personal information and credit card number.

You should only provide your password and credit card number in a secure connection on a web site, not in ordinary e-mail. "Identity Theft," a serious crime in which someone gets access to your bank account or signs up for credit cards or loans in your name, is a growing problem, and you should carefully guard personal information that might allow a thief to impersonate you.

Passwords:
Do you use different passwords for different activities? If you use a password to log on to your network or computer, use a different password for online purchases. Some web sites may require you to create a password for future orders. You may want to create a special password for particularly sensitive sites, such as your home banking site.

Choosing a Secure Password:
The best passwords are not your address, birth date, phone number, or recognizable words. Choose a string of at least five letters, numbers, and punctuation marks. One easy way to create a memorable password is to take the first letter of each word in an expression or song lyric, and add some numbers and punctuation marks. For example, "tmottbg!5" is derived in part from the song "Take Me Out To The Ball Game."

Recording your password:
DO NOT write down any password near your computer where someone could see it. If you do record it somewhere, reverse the order of the characters or transpose some letters or numbers. That way, someone finding it will NOT have discovered your true password.

Guard Your Password or Other Identifying Information:
Be very careful about responding to an e-mail, phone call, fax, or letter from anyone who asks for your password(s), social security number, birth date, bank account, credit card number, mother's maiden name, or other similar personal information.

To verify that the person contacting you really does work for the seller, get their phone number and then call back and request to speak to that person directly. And if you uncover a scam, report it immediately to the appropriate authorities. Except for your name, password and credit card number, you should never have to provide any other information to place an order online.

Avoiding Viruses, Spyware, and other Cyber-Threats:
If you receive an unsolicited commercial e-mail message, you should not open any attached file unless you are absolutely sure it is from a trusted source. Clicking on such files could activate a computer virus that might affect the operation of your computer, steal your personal data, and/or damage the information stored on your computer.

You can also protect yourself against viruses in e-mail – or any software or digital files you received on a floppy disk, CD, DVD, flash drive, thumb drive, data card, or other portable media – by making sure that your computer is protected against viruses and spyware, and you have an effective firewall on your computer (AND on your network, if you connect to a network).
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Your web browser must be set to accept "cookies" if you want to shop online:
In order to shop online, your web browser must accept "cookies." These are little snippets of computer code that help the seller's website to identify your computer and track your activities as you navigate your way through their site. This process helps you find what you want more easily and helps the website identify you as a customer. Most such e-commerce cookies expire in a few days or weeks, and there is no need to worry about them. HOWEVER, if your web security software is set to block ALL cookies, you may not be able to buy online at all, OR you may not be able to take advantage of "special offer" deals. Most security software today will easily distinguish the difference between safe e-commerce tracking cookies and spyware or other cookies that might contain malicious code.

•	If you use INTERNET EXPLORER (Microsoft), the browser's address field will turn green, and split in half. One side of the address field will display a lock icon, which you can click to open a window that provides security verification for that page and web site;
•	If you use FIREFOX (Mozilla), a colored button at the left end of the address field will display the name of the website you are visiting. Clicking on that button opens a window that provides security verification for that page and web site.
•	If you use SAFARI (Apple), a secure page will show a small gray lock icon at the right of the address field. Double-clicking that icon opens a window that provides security verification for that page and web site.
•	If you use CHROME (Google), the browser's address field will turn yellow and displays a lock icon at the right, which you can click to open a window that provides security verification for that page and web site.
•	If you use OPERA (Open SSL Project), a small lock icon will display at the right of the address field. Clicking the icon opens a window that provides security verification for that page and web site.
The above five browsers are the most widely used in the world today. But regardless of which browser you are currently using, the online merchant's website itself will usually tell you what type of security is in place, and may also display one or more security icons on their "commerce page" to assure you of a secure transaction. The web address (URL, or "Universal Resource Locator") of any order page that asks for your credit card number or other personal information should begin with "https:" instead of "http:" to show that some form of reliable security protocol is in place on that page.


	One: Make Sure You are Doing Business on a Secure Website ...