Everyone knows the day after Thanksgiving the is biggest shopping day of the year, but what many don’t know is that the following Monday is catching up fast!!
With door buster sales, slashed prices and free shipping, CyberMonday is the online equivalent of the in-store Black Friday sales. Protecting yourself from spammers, computer viruses, and dishonest sellers this time of year is extremely important. Having an up to date virus scan program on your computer, and knowing a few safety tips can help to keep you safe.
Scott Silverman of the National Retail Federation and Shop.org & Beth Jordan of AVG have provided shoppers with some simple tips to help keep you and your computer safe.
Safety:
- Be sure to shop on reputable, trust-worthy sites such as CyberMonday.com and its retail partners
- Just as you’re more careful when shopping in busy malls during the holiday, be more careful online as well
- AVG offers free downloads of virus scan and link scan here: www.shop.org/shopsafely and http://free.avg.com/us-en/download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition
Tips
1. Look for the “S” for Security: Make sure the sites you are shopping from are secure and have “HTTPS” in the URL. (the url for the site itself doesn’t have to have the ‘s’, but the checkout portion of the site where you enter your payment information does!!) The “S” ensures security. Also, look for the padlock symbol and research shopping sites at locations such as shopzilla.com and pricegrabber.com.
2. Stay Current on Security Software: Make sure you have the latest virus protection software updates from your provider before you start your holiday shopping.
3. Think Before You Link: Employ a URL scanning tool to ensure you’re not clicking on links that lead to infected websites. Free tool here: http://free.avg.com/us-en/download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition
4. Keep Your Private Information Private: Make sure you keep your personal information private. Create a separate e-mail account just for shopping and use a unique password. Keep records of your online shopping by printing confirmation pages and e-mail confirmations.
5. Mix Up Your Passwords: Each e-mail, bank, and credit card account should have a unique password. Write them down and store them in a secure location. Or, use a password protected system like RoboForm to store your passwords.
These tips can all be found at www.shop.org/shopsafely
Deals:
- 42% of Americans will buy at least one gift online this holiday season. Online sales are expected to increase about eight percent this holiday season while overall retail sales are expected to fall one percent.
Why people spend online:
- the ability to shop at all hours of the day
- easier to compare prices
- free shipping
- convenience
- avoiding crowds
- easier to find items
CyberMonday.com aggregates the best deals from their 600 retail partners, all on one site.
- deals of the hour on Black Friday and Cyber Monday can be found at CyberMonday.com
- you can find sites offering free shipping by choosing “free shipping offers” on the top right of the site
- the site also contains a “Deal of the Week,” special offers, and coupons
Also, don’t forget to sign up and shop thru Ebates.com for cashback on all your purchases!!
Giveaways:
From today through Cyber Monday (11/30), $250 in gift cards from Shop.org’s retail partners will be given away daily at the Cyber Monday Twitter account and Facebook account.
There will also be a Twitter event on Tuesday, November 24th from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. ET with the hashtag #CyberMonday. More tips will be shared and gift cards will be awarded during the event.
More Links:
- Become a fan of AVG on Facebook
Disclaimer: Links to RoboForm and Ebates are both affiliate links meaning if you purchase something from one of these sites you will not be charged any more than normal, but I will make a small commission.
I agree with you. It's better to do some preventative measures to avoid spywares.