Online shopping offers convenience but creates security risks that require careful attention to protect personal and financial information.
Samantha Harper, a financial crimes manager with STCU, says cybercriminals strategically target vulnerable moments. “They know when you are at your stressed or your loneliest, and that’s when they choose to hit and provide the right story to make it really believable,” Harper said.
Three Safety Tips
First, avoid public WiFi for purchases. “Do it at home or somewhere where you have a secure wifi connection, you know others are not also on that network,” Harper advised.
Second, don’t save banking details on websites. “You want to not save your card information, I know it takes extra time to type it in every time you need to purchase something but that can be a real avenue for the fraudsters to use it over and over again,” she explained.
Third, use phrase-based passwords. “It might sound funny, like computer cup blue. I mean, you put those words together and usually it’s an odd enough phrase that you will remember it, but it’s also not one that a scammer would guess based on your social media or other things that are out there on you,” Harper said.
Legitimate organizations rarely request money transfers through text or email. When receiving suspicious requests, conduct simple online searches to verify legitimacy.
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