How to shop safely online

Online shopping is getting more popular with Singaporean. You need not squeeze with the crowd and are not bound by local geographical. Shopping on World Wide Web means you shop around the world at the comfort of your home. Some tips to shop safely online:-

1. Never disclose credit card information

This is often neglected by users. Never give out your credit card information in an ordinary email or on an unencrpyted page. Ensure web address begins with "https" instead of "http" for web page that asks for your credit card information. Credible shopping sites use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology to encrypt the credit card information send over the internet.

2. Pay with a credit card

Do not pay by debit card. If someone happens to gain access to your debit card online, they can clean out your account before you even learn about it.

3. Saving credit card information option

Many shopping sites are providing this convenient service to speed up the purchasing process. It is safer to enter your credit card information yourself each time you shop. Hence limiting the risk that your credit card information is being stolen and misuse by others.

4. Using private computer

Do not use public computer as you have no control over who might be using the computer as well. Be sure to log out from the site and clear the browser history, cookies and page cache.

5. Foreign sellers

Make sure they have a physical address. If they only have Post Office Box listed, it serves as a cue to shop elsewhere.