Black Friday scams are expected to come sooner as the next shopping day arrives this week.
However, with the arrival of new products and items in several retailers, scammers will be taking advantage of the situation just to steal valuable assets from the customers including their personal information and money.
It's safe to assume that online holiday shopping won't be smooth given how advanced these hackers are these days. To protect yourself from falling into their trap, here's what you need to know.
Black Friday Scams: How to Avoid Them
Almost two years ago, the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants conducted a survey wherein people were asked about the holiday shopping scam. The results showed that 1 out of 5 respondents reportedly got scammed during the peak season of 2020.
It's important to keep your guard against these online threats and hackers so you can safely shop without any concerns or issues.
Monitor Your Bank Account
Regularly checking your bank account is one way to avoid Black Friday Scams. USA Today reports that once you start this practice, you'll get used to evaluating any suspicious activity in your financial statement.
Since this is the era of digital banks, hackers have improved their tactics by sending phishing links and mimicking official websites.
If there are any suspicious links, your account might be exposed, and when it gets exposed, the scammers can easily retrieve every information stored in your account.
Look Up at the URL Bar
When you're browsing online shopping websites, you will see the URL in the browsing space. Make sure to check this bar always since the web address will tell you if the site is malicious or not.
If it does not make sense and or is far from the official name of the store, then it might be an outlet for hacking. As DeVry University previously mentioned in its report, a responsible customer should look for the "lock" icon beside the web address.
Use a Reliable Password Manager
Password managers are reliable tools to keep your account secure from unwanted access. It's always recommended to use a trusted password manager especially if you are visiting third-party shopping apps.
Instead of manually writing all your passwords on one piece of paper, you can keep them in a single storage.
"Password managers lock your information behind a master password and many of them autofill the website logins for you, keeping you safe from keylogger attacks," Chris Bluvshtein, VPNOverview.com's online security expert said.
Another tip that you can try is to start using multi-factor authentication technology. Begin by setting up a 2FA system on your device for your online accounts.
Avoid Connecting to Public Wi-Fi During Shopping
Public Wi-Fi provides the convenience that we need when we want to connect to the internet instantly. However, there are some risks to consider when you do that.
According to Bluvshtein, hackers can use this public Wi-Fi as an outlet for hacking. Without you knowing, this unsecured access point has already stolen your financial data and other confidential information.
For more holiday online shopping tips, check our latest report on how to avoid internet fraud during this season.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Joseph Henry
