With the security online a little doubtful, one can expect that online shopping is an easy way to get ripped off. Online shopping is convenient for customers. But it’s also very enjoying for scammers who hook on a pool of potential victims.

This is especially true during the holiday season, wherein lots of customers shop online instead to avoid the crowd of the holiday rush. This would be a great opportunity for scammers to defraud consumers who are either in a hurry to make a purchase or still a beginner at online shopping.

Consumers should stay alert on auctions and classified ad sites. A lot of fraudulent acts take place in these sites. Consumers should also be careful on the kinds of emails they receive. Phishing activities also increases in the holiday season.

While we cannot entirely stay away from these online scams, we can always do our best to avoid them. Here are some ways to help you with security when shopping online:

Update Your Security Software. Protection for your computer is essential. Make sure you’ve updated your firewall, antivirus, and antispyware programs.

Check Whether The Site and Store Is Legit. You might come across a new site and a store you’ve never heard of. Before buying anything from them, check whether the store is legit and can be trusted.

You can look for its physical address, or get their telephone number or email address. You can also check with the Better Business Bureau and see if the company is associated with them or not, or if there are any complaints against them.

There is also a site called Network Solutions, and it has an online security certification program called SiteSafe. Another site that deals in online security is ScanAlert, and it has a program called Hacker Safe. The logo of these companies are usually placed on the home page of online shopping sites. Click on them to make sure they’re real and check on the site’s certification status.

Avoid Doubtful Deals. Shopping online auction and classified ad sites are really risky. There are offers and ads that are hard to comprehend and are sometimes crazy enough to have you raise an eyebrow. You might have come across a scam advertisement where a new and ordinarily expensive merchandise is being offered for a low price or for free if the buyer pays for the shipment. This would really be suspicious.

Payment through a wire service is also suspicious activity. There is no reason why somebody would want to have the payment wired to them unless it’s fraudulent.

Make a Temporary Account For Your Payment Options. There are institutions that offer temporary account numbers for their cardholders. Bank of America and Discover are two of these. This service is very helpful for many who are wary of giving their credit card information online. You can’t use the temporary accounts for all purchases, however.

Verify Your Bank’s Emails. You might receive a phishing email that would seem to have come from a bank or credit card company. When you receive an email like this, especially after you’ve just mad a purchase, call the number on your bank statement or credit card to check and see whether it was really from them. Don’t click on a link from the email, and don’t use the phone number sent by that email (unless it really is from your bank).

Remember to always be wary of to whom and where you’re giving your financial information. The holiday season is a perfect opportunity online scams, and it can be difficult to know which is a true and which is a fraud.

A U.S. Treasury report provides consumers with steps to prevent and report phishing scams:

* Do not respond to or open any e-mail that warns that an account is about to be closed. Contact the company directly by phone and inquire of this e-mail.
* Do not submit financial information unless there is a symbol for a locked padlock on the browser’s status bar. Also look for the https:// at the beginning of the Web address. If both of these signs are absent, the Web site is not secure.
* Always review your bank statement and credit card statements immediately upon receipt.
* Verify the domestic telephone number listed on the Web site through directory assistance or other reliable sources and call the number. Many phishing attacks have originated outside the U.S. and don´t have a domestic number.
* Report suspicious activity or if you have been defrauded to the FTC and the FBI.
* Phishing e-mails can be forwarded to uce@ftc.gov. Complaints can be filed at www.ftc.gov. Phishing attacks can also be reported to the Internet Fraud Complaint Center at www.ifccfbi.gov.

Other cautionary measures you should take in order to protect yourself are:

* Since most of the phishing emails come through spam, get a spam filter and install on your computer.
* If you suspect a phishing attempt, report immediately to the bank. Every bank web site has a link or a toll-free number to report scams. Don’t be ashamed if you were tricked into divulging account information. If you report it immediately, your account will be protected until you receive a new PIN.
* Change your password and PINs regularly. Banks advise that you use separate PINs and passwords for different accounts, that way if one gets compromised, your entire financial life won’t be revealed.
* If you are a frequent user of EBay, download its Web browser toolbar, a small program that runs with a user’s Web browser. It flashes red when the user visits a possible spoof site. The toolbar uses a database of spoof site URLs, submitted by customers and is updated quite often.
* Check your computer frequently for possible Trojan virus.

Source: phishing

These emails were actually examples of “phishing,” an attack designed to make you divulge sensitive information. This vlog entry shows what telltale signs prove the email is not from US Bank and is, in fact, malicious.