Cyber Monday

 

 

Cyber Monday: Tips to Avoid Online Shopping Scams

If you're planning on shopping on Cyber Monday, it's important to know that scammers are getting ready too. The company IDentity Theft 911 offered these tips to help protect yourself from scams and fraud while shopping online this holiday season, and all year long. Shop on secure sites. Look for "https" in the address bar and a yellow padlock logo to the right of the Web browser address bar. Double-click on the lock to see a digital certificate of the website. Review these certificates on unfamiliar sites. Make sure you are entering correct URLs. Hackers often buy misspelled domains to trick people into entering personal information. Never enter your Social Security number or passwords to e-mail and bank accounts as part of the buying process with online retailers. Use a different password for each online retailer, personal e-mail account and banks account you have. That way, if a hacker cracks one password, he or she won't have access to others. Read reviews of a site before making any purchases from it. These are some of the suggestions to avoid becoming a victim of Identity Theft.

Cyber Monday Scams

Hope everyone had a great thanksgiving!!! Lookout for Cyber Monday Deals-and Scams Turkey, pumpkin pie, and football aren't the only things that are part of many American's Thanksgiving traditions. Steals, deals, and bargain prices are also becoming a part of the holiday season-and more and more people are going online to find them. Cyber Monday, one of the biggest shopping days of the year for consumers and retailers, also provides a golden opportunity for scammers and spammers looking to take advantage of the higher than normal amount of people shopping online. On Cyber Monday, hackers use tactics like preying on popular keyword searches, such as "jewelry" or "flat screen TV," to lure unsuspecting shoppers to malicious websites. The Department of Homeland Security's Stop.Think.Connect.TM Campaign offers the following tips to help safeguard your personal information and transactions on Cyber Monday and throughout the holiday season: Keep your computer, browser, anti-virus and other critical software up to date. Security updates and patches are available for free from major companies. Pay attention to website URLs. Malicious websites may look identical to a legitimate site, but the URL may use a variation in spelling or a different domain (e.g., .com vs. .net). Also look in the address box for the "s" in https:// before any transaction. That "s" tells you that the site is taking extra measures to help secure your information. Beware of deals that sound too good to be true. Use caution when opening email attachments and do not follow unsolicited web links in email messages. Pay special attention to extremely low prices on hard-to-get items. Check privacy policies. Before providing personal or financial information, check the website's privacy policy to ensure your safety. Use a credit card. There are laws to limit your liability for fraudulent credit card charges, and you may not have the same level of protection when using your debit card. Keep a record of your order. Retain all documentation from the order in the event your purchase does not ship or if there are unauthorized charges on your bill. Check your statements. Keep a record of your purchases and copies of confirmation pages, and compare them to your bank statements. If there is a discrepancy, report it immediately.

Identity Theft...Home Security.... Work hand in hand

Phishing costs millions

Last year, members of the American Airlines AAdvantage Program received e-mail purportedly from American Airlines promising $50 for participating in an online survey. But those who took the bait ended up on a fake site that asked for their personal information.
We estimate consumer losses to phishing scams at almost a half-billion dollars during the past two years. Last fall, more than 250 brand names were used each month in e-mail scams and other cybercrime.   The most targeted industry was financial services.
One reason there are many successful phishing attacks is that users of social-network sites are often targeted  and might be less alert to the presence of malicious Web sites, dangerous e-mail, and harmful software. "Phishing e-mails are designed to make you think there coming from a legitamit business or government agency. While earlier phishing scams were characterized by poor grammar, misspellings, and cheesy graphics, most are now so well done that experts can't easily tell real ones from fake.

Protect yourself

Never provide personal information via an e-mail link. Enable the antiphishing feature in your browser or download a free antiphishing toolbar such as McAfee Site Advisor (at www.siteadvisor.com), which warns you when you're visiting a dangerous site. Only 27 percent of respondents to our survey used such tools.