Predictions are pointing out to one future for online shopping – that it would be the primary purchasing tool a decade or so from now for Western civilizations. Online shopping is the epitome of convenience, and more and more people are discovering its advantages everyday.
Online shopping: the awesome perks
Online shoppers say that they prefer this medium because there are no lines, no endless dusty aisles to sift through, and no grumpy salesperson to deal with. But the paradigm shift to online paperless shopping was embraced by the public because of the many other perks it offers.
Many consumers are now shifting to online shopping because the venue gives them more opportunities to be smart in their shopping endeavors. They find great assistance in decision making with the available product reviews. And they also get to compare product prices and find out for themselves how companies differ in their offers without needing to physically visit one boutique or shopping mall after another. That’s a lot of savings on time and transportation expense.
Though current products are also sold online, one of the main advantages of online shopping is the savings afforded customers who are willing to sit it out and wait to avail of products when they are not so “current” anymore. The customer gets products at cheaper rates and the retailer profits still. Some companies even waive shipping fees and tax charges in order to attract more customers.
Online shopping: security measures
Having a reliable and unique password with the most elaborate combination of letters, symbols and numbers, and making sure that you use a different one for every site you use is just the first line of defense in online shopping.
Before you upload your financial details online, you have to be sure that you are protected and that the risk of the data falling into the wrong hands is decreased. One means of ensuring your safety is to maintain a safe operating system and application software updated for extra protection. But if you have anti-virus software plus anti-spyware and a considerable firewall, your protection is leveled up considerably.
Another measure is to be careful and discerning when visiting online shopping sites. There are infected sites out there, and some of them show up at the very top of search results. And do not be too eager in clicking on an advertisement and links promising great deals and discounts. Sometimes, these lead to infected sites as well.
Online shopping: security indicators
How do you know that a site is secure enough to ensure the security of your financial transactions? Here’s a checklist that you can use as guide so that you can be sure that you are giving your money to a legitimate web vendor on a secure connection:
➢ The address bar of the website should start with an “https”
➢ The browser must have a locked padlock icon
➢ A green background together with the closed padlock icon is a sign that a Secure Sockets Layer or SSL certificate is in use. This means that the data is scrambled/ encrypted before being sent out into the Cloud.
Here’s one more tip. Before you start shopping online, one of the first things that you must do is to set up payment methods that do not include electronic fund transfers or debit cards. You can still pay for purchases using a credit card, but it would be best if you assign one credit card for all your online shopping requirements. Choose a credit card with a low limit if you want to set down some control over your spending. And avoid sending you account details in e-mail messages that could easily be hacked by talented cyber criminals. That kind of information must only be exchanged via a secure website. The most popular online payment method to date is via PayPal and you can shop anywhere online using it. But you may explore other services and choose the one that fits your requirements best.
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