5. Protect Your Privacy and Security When Shopping Online

In this chapter, you’ll discover strategies for getting the most out of your online shopping experiences while maintaining your privacy and security. Topics include:

Finding and shopping from reputable online merchants

Understanding the importance of merchant and product reviews

Taking advantage of security features when shopping online from your computer or mobile device

Reaping the benefits of using an electronic payment service to pay for online purchases

Shopping online has many benefits. Just about every popular retail store and chain, ranging from Best Buy, Costco, The Gap, Macy’s, Target, and Walmart, all have websites and mobile apps for shopping in addition to their traditional retail locations. Plus, countless online-only merchants, such as AliExpress.com, Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, are available via the Internet every day—some operated by massive companies, and others running as one-person operations from the business owner’s home.

You can greatly improve your security and privacy using the strategies described in this chapter. For example, always pay for purchases using a major credit card instead of a debit card, and make sure that you’re on the website you intended to visit, and not an impostor website.

Whether it’s to save time, to save money, or to access a broader collection of merchandise than what’s typically available locally in stores, many positive reasons exist to shop online.

Unfortunately, a dark side to online shopping also exists, where cybercriminals take advantage of consumers. By understanding some of the potential ways these cybercriminals do their dastardly deeds, you can avoid the problems.

Avoiding Online Shopping Security Risks

As when using the Internet for any task, you can’t do much about some risks (like if the online merchant experiences a major data breach by a hacker). However, you can take precautions to prevent other online risks.

Most online shopping–related risks can be avoided with knowledge of red flags to look out for. Some precautions you can take include the following:

• A firewall on your home computer network

• Antivirus/malware protection software running on your computer

• A virtual private network (VPN) installed on your computer and mobile device for when you surf the web using a public Wi-Fi (refer to Chapter 3)

• Using a different username, or at least a different password, for each online shopping account you set up.

The following sections discuss some potential safety and security risks you want to consider when shopping online.

Being Aware of Fake Websites

Beware of phishing schemes trying to capture your attention by promoting a massive (but fake) sale from a popular online seller. The goal of the email will be to get you to click a link that opens your web browser and directs you to a fake website.

The fake website will gather your information, including your name, address, and payment details, and use this information for identity theft, to steal money, or to perpetuate some other form of online fraud. By clicking the link in the phishing email, you might also download and install a virus or malware onto your computer (or mobile device).

To prevent this, instead of clicking links in emails that lead to an online merchant’s website, launch a web browser and manually type in the correct website address (URL) for the online merchant you want to visit (such as www.amazon.com, www.bestbuy.com, or www.target.com).

Paying Attention to Product Descriptions

When choosing a product you plan to purchase, don’t just read the product’s title or headline and assume it’s the correct thing. Read the entire description that the online vendor provides. Confirm that what’s being sold is the correct make, model number, color, style, size, and so on.

If product updates have been released, make sure you’re buying the most recent model, and not a model that’s being discounted because it’s been discontinued and replaced by a newer model (unless that’s your intention).

As you read the product’s description, make sure the item is described as “new.” Beware of other phrases that describe the product’s condition, such as, “like new,” “refurbished,” “reconditioned,” “irregular,” “discontinued,” “overstock,” or “used.” If the item is being sold without its original packaging or with items or parts missing (such as the owner’s manual), this, too, will typically be mentioned, but sometimes in the fine print.

When an item is being sold at a significant discount, there’s typically a reason. Before making the purchase, you want to know what that reason is, and make sure you’re okay with it. This is particularly important when shopping on eBay.com, because sellers can sell almost any type of goods, in any condition.

Watching Out for Counterfeit Goods

The primary goal of most online shoppers is to save money on their purchases. In some cases, this might involve shopping on a website that’s operated by a company you’ve never heard of. Before making a significant purchase from one of these companies, go online and look up reviews for the merchant.

Some less than scrupulous online sellers promote authentic or genuine products, but send out cheap imitations, knockoffs, or counterfeit goods. This is more common when shopping for designer clothing, jewelry, or accessories (such as designer handbags or watches). For consumer electronics or digital photography equipment, what you might receive is a gray market product (see the following sidebar) or knock-off.

If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If you want to purchase a designer Louis Vuitton or Gucci handbag that typically sells for $2,500 new, but the website is offering the same new product for $1,000, the deal is too good to be true. You’ll likely receive a knock-off product from overseas, a damaged or irregular item, or a used item.

The easiest way to determine whether an online merchant is legitimate is to conduct an online search for ratings and reviews for that merchant. eBay is one place where any merchant can sell just about anything. By reading that merchant’s reviews, you can often get a good idea of the experience past customers have had.

You shouldn’t trust ratings, reviews, and customer testimonials published on an independent online merchant’s own website. Instead, search online for the merchant’s name, followed by the phrase “Customer Ratings” or “Customer Reviews” to find independent resources that’ll help you determine a merchant’s credibility before you make a major purchase.

Many independent websites maintain vast databases of reviews pertaining to online merchants. Some of these include:

• Better Business Bureau: www.bbb.org

• BizRate: www.bizrate.com/ratings_guide/guide

• Consumer Reports: www.consumerreports.org/cro/shopping-websites.htm

• Reseller Ratings: www.resellerratings.com

Again, by making online purchases with a major credit card, you have recourse if you receive an item that is not as described. You can contact the online merchant and, failing satisfaction, you can contact your credit card issuer and request to do a chargeback, before you pay your credit card bill. Check the terms of your card for details.

Ignoring Requests for Too Much Personal Information

When making an online purchase, you’ll typically need to provide the merchant with your full name, billing address, shipping address, shopping (online, email address, phone number, and payment details.

Based on what you’re purchasing, if the merchant requests other information that is not relevant to the purchase—such as your birthdate, driver’s license number, Social Security number, or bank account details—avoid providing that information.

Being Careful What You Sign Up For

When you set up an online account, you’ll need to supply your email address. You’ll often be given the opportunity to opt in or opt out from receiving promotional emails.

To reduce the amount of spam you receive, seriously consider opting out, because many companies will ultimately sell or share their email lists with other merchants, and after your email address gets on these lists, your email account’s Inbox could get bombarded by spam.

If a cybercriminal gets an email list from a merchant, you could receive emails related to phishing schemes or other fraudulent activities. Unless you know and fully trust the online merchant, and believe that by opting in to the company’s promotional email list you’ll receive a genuine benefit, always opt out.

If the online merchant does not give you a choice to opt out of their promotional email list, as soon as you start receiving unsolicited promotional emails from that company, unsubscribe from the email list. You can often do this by scrolling to the bottom of the incoming email message and clicking the Unsubscribe option. In some cases, you’ll need to sign in to your online account with that merchant and adjust your customer preferences.

Understanding Ratings and Reviews

When you’re shopping for a product on an online website, you’ll want to read the ratings and reviews of the product as well as the merchant.

Services like Amazon.com, eBay.com, Etsy.com, and online shopping sites operated by all major retail stores and chains (including BestBuy, Costco, Target, and Walmart) all publish star-based ratings and detailed reviews of every product that’s sold. These ratings and reviews are created by customers.

Star-based ratings typically range from one to five stars, with one star being the worst and five stars being the highest possible rating. In addition to looking at the average star-based rating, you should also note how many individual ratings the average is based upon.

A product or merchant with 10,000+ five-star ratings is probably a lot more credible than a product or online seller with just 10 five-star ratings. Because you have so many product options and online merchants to choose from, if you come across an average star-based rating of one, two, three stars, avoid making the purchase. Find a similar item or seller that has achieved consistent five-star ratings.

Beyond looking at the star-based ratings, you can delve deeper and read the text-based reviews published by past customers. If the reviews are too good or each seems almost identical, but apparently written by different people, the reviews could be fraudulent and should be ignored. Likewise, when you encounter one or two bad reviews that are mixed with dozens or hundreds of good reviews, you can typically give less credibility to the few bad reviews.

Knowing that online ratings and reviews have become an important tool that consumers use to make their purchasing decisions, less scrupulous companies have discovered ways to publish fake reviews and ratings. However, you can often weed these out based on their wording, or by noting if dozens of similar reviews were published on the same day but no new or similar reviews have been published since.

For example, beware if you see a product with 25 reviews, and 20 of them have almost identical wording—or you can tell the reviews were written by the same person based on their tone, spelling, grammar, or content. Reviews that are near duplicates are most likely fake. Product reviews with generic wording, that don’t mention the product by name or refer to the product as “the product,” are also often fake.

When shopping on Amazon.com, TripAdvisor, Walmart.com, or Yelp, if you’re not sure whether to believe the consumer reviews, try using a free website called FakeSpot (www.fakespot.com). Within the FakeSpot Analyzer field found on the main page of this website, enter the website address for the product description you’re viewing, and then click on the Analyze Reviews option. Within seconds, you’ll see a report that grades the authenticity of the product’s reviews.

Reading ratings and reviews for a product can help you determine whether the product description is accurate and the actual product is good quality and lives up to consumer expectations. Reading ratings and reviews for an online merchant will help you determine if that seller is credible, reputable, and has a lot of very happy or dissatisfied customers.

Permitting Cookies When Shopping Online

Assuming you’re connecting to a legitimate online merchant’s website via a secure Internet connection, and you plan on making purchases from the website, consider allowing your browser to accept first-party cookies from that website. The website then can retain information about you as a customer, so when you return to that same website, it’ll remember your name, billing address, shipping address, email address, payment details, and past order history, as well as any items placed in your shopping cart, but that you ultimately didn’t purchase.

You’ll discover that when a website you shop on remembers your information (and uses it for the right reasons), the shopping and checkout process is faster and more convenient. The drawback is that if that merchant’s computers are hacked by a cybercriminal, any stored information could be compromised.

Verifying the Return Policy

Especially if you’re about to purchase a high-priced item online, determine what the online merchant’s return policy is. Don’t just read the headline that says, “30-Day Money Back Guarantee.” Instead, read the fine print. You may discover that the company only offers a seven-day money back guarantee if the product has been opened. In some cases, the merchant might offer a refund, but only for a limited time, or just a store credit.

Determine whether the company also charges a restocking fee, which could be up to 20 percent of the purchase price, and whether the company pays for the return shipping of the product.

Keep in mind that if you’re ordering or commissioning something that’s being custom made specifically for you, the seller may adopt an “all sales final” policy with no returns or exchanges permitted, unless the item is defective. Whether you’re willing to accept this policy and make the initial purchase is up to you, but you should understand the policy before placing the order and pre-paying.

Looking for Free Shipping Offers

A lot of competition exists among merchants in cyberspace, and one way many attempt to lure you into becoming a customer is to offer free standard shipping. Always factor in shipping when you’re looking at prices.

Keep in mind that unless it’s otherwise promoted, free shipping offers are typically for standard (ground) shipping, which means your item could take three to ten days to arrive after it’s been shipped, based on the shipping service used and where the item is being shipped from. If you want to receive the item faster, you’ll be required to pay an extra shipping charge.

In this case, determine whether the additional or extra shipping charge from the shipping service is simply being passed onto you by the merchant, or if you’re being charged a premium for expedited shipping that allows the merchant to increase its profits. This will often be explained during the online checkout process, but you may need to carefully read the fine print displayed on the screen. If you still don’t understand the shipping and handling-related charges being applied to your online order, call the merchant before placing your order and ask for clarification.

When shopping with an online merchant that charges for shipping, or even worse, charges a premium handling fee in addition to shipping, you could easily see the final price for the items you purchase increasing dramatically, so pay attention to what’s being offered, and shop around for the best and most competitive deals that include shipping and handling charges.

For example, if you find the item you want selling online for $50.00 with free shipping from one online merchant, but another online seller is offering the same item for $40.00, but charges $17.95 shipping and handling, you can easily see which one is ultimately the better deal.

Ensuring a Secure Internet Connection

When you’re shopping, as when you are online for other purposes, you’ll want a secure Internet connection. In addition to using a firewall on your home computer network, using a VPN at home and when using Wi-Fi, and taking advantage of the added security features offered by antivirus and malware protection software, you can ensure you’re working with a secure online connection.

When you visit an online store and start the checkout process, you should see a lock symbol displayed somewhere in the web browser window (usually in the Search/Website Address field to the left of the website URL). The location will vary, based on which web browser you’re using.

This lock symbol means that your web connection is secure and encrypted. As long as you see this lock symbol, it’s much safer to share your personal information and payment details.

Another indication that your connection with the website you’re visiting is secure is that instead of the website address beginning with http://, it’ll begin with https://. The “s” stands for secure, and is typically accompanied by the lock symbol.

When sharing personal or financial information online, such as when making an online purchase or handling online banking tasks, not seeing https:// as part of the webpage URL or the lock symbol means the connection between your web browser and that webpage is not secure or encrypted, and you should avoid sharing the information, especially during the checkout portion of the online purchase process or while you’re viewing your shopping cart.

The lack of the lock symbol or https:// as part of the website URL can also be an indication that you’re visiting a spoof (fake) website instead of the real one for the company you’re intending to do business with.

Comparing Prices on Websites

A price comparison website or mobile app is an independent service that allows you to type in the name and details for any product you want to purchase. Within seconds, that website scours the Internet and displays a collection of online sellers currently offering that product. Before purchasing a product from a merchant advertising the lowest price, you should read the reviews for that merchant and determine if what is being advertised is the actual product you want to purchase.

Sometimes, the product might be an older or discontinued model, which is why it’s being sold for less money. In other situations, the merchant might be selling a used or refurbished version of the product, not a new item in its original packaging.

Some less reputable merchants try to trick consumers using creative language to describe products that are not new or genuine. In the product description, watch out for phrases such as “like new,” “used,” “refurbished,” “manufacturer refurbished,” or “gray market.” These and similar phrases indicate that the product is not new and in the original packaging.

Most price comparison websites offer star-based reviews of merchants. Only shop from merchants with an average star-based rating of four or five stars, which is based on hundreds or thousands of consumer reviews. Also pay attention to the text-based reviews relating to that merchant.

By browsing through the search results, you can quickly find the online seller offering the item you’re interested in at the lowest price, access ratings and reviews for that seller, and learn about the seller’s shipping and return policies.

Watch out for merchants that advertise a very low price for a product, but then add an outrageously high shipping and handling charge to your order right before you check out and provide your payment details.

Anytime you’re shopping online, especially if it’s from a merchant you’re not familiar with, always use a major credit card or electronic payment service, such as Apple Pay or PayPal (that’s linked with a major credit card) as opposed to a debit card. This provides you with an added level of protection from your credit card issuer if you have a problem with that merchant.

Using a price comparison website can often save you a fortune when purchasing a higher priced item. However, here are a few things to consider when using one of these free services:

• Is the service supported by its advertisers, and as a result, does it attempt to drive online shoppers to its paid advertisers?

• Does the comparison service investigate the online merchants it works with to ensure each is legitimate and honest?

• Does the price comparison website provide accurate details about each online merchant’s return policy, as well as whether free shipping and handling is offered with each order? If free shipping isn’t offered, can you determine shipping and handling charges that’ll be applied to each order in advance? One way online sellers use price comparison services is to purposely display an extremely low and highly competitive price for a product, but then charge outrageously high shipping and handling charges, which you don’t find out about until you’re about to check out.

Use a Price Comparison Website from a Computer

There are many price comparison websites operated by independent companies. Some of the more popular ones include Nextag (www.nextag.com), PriceGrabber (www.pricegrabber.com), Shopping.com (www.shopping.com), and ShopSavvy (www.shopsavvy.com). To find others, search in a browser for “price comparison website” or “best price comparison websites.”

To use a price comparison website, follow these steps:

Launch your favorite web browser, and in the Search/Website Address field, type in the service’s website address. In this example, Nextag.com is being accessed, so type www.nextag.com into the Search/Website address field.

From the Nextag home page, in the What Can We Help You Find? field, type in exactly what you’re shopping for. Be as specific as possible. If you know the product’s UPC barcode number, type in that. Otherwise, type in the desired product make, model, size, color, and so on. For this example, type in Ring Video Doorbell 2.

Click the magnifying glass–shaped Search icon. The Search Results screen appears.

Each search result contains details about the product, the online vendor selling the product, the average star-based rating of the vendor, and the vendor’s selling price for the item. If free shipping is offered, this is also mentioned.

Based on the seller’s information, pricing, and ratings, click one of the vendor listings in the search results. You’ll be transferred to the vendor’s website.

Read more about the product, learn about the vendor, and if you choose, place an order for the desired product.

In some cases, the seller may be offering the product on eBay.com instead of its own website. Making purchases on eBay.com will require you to first set up a free eBay account. Before making the purchase, click the Seller Information option and determine the reputation of the seller by viewing its ratings and reviews.

Use a Price Comparison Website from a Mobile App

Every popular price comparison website also has a proprietary mobile app that’s available from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. Two extra benefits to using the mobile app include:

• You can perform a price comparison easily while you’re in a retail store.

• You can use the camera that’s built in to the back of your smartphone (or tablet) to scan a product’s UPC barcode (displayed on its packaging), so you don’t have to type in any details about a product.

If you perform a search of online sellers and retailers, you can often have the retail store you’re in do a price match if you want to purchase the item where you are, or you can determine what other nearby retail stores have your item in stock, and choose one that’s selling it for less money.

Taking Advantage of Electronic Payment Options for Added Security

Since PayPal was launched in December 1998, it has been one of the leading electronic payment options, and it’s currently accepted by the most online merchants. A growing number of online merchants are starting to accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

As of 2018, PayPal (www.paypal.com) had more than 244 million active account holders. PayPal serves as an intermediary between online merchants and consumers and offers an added layer of security and protection for consumers who shop online.

You set up a free and secure PayPal account online. You link your pre-existing credit card, debit card, or checking account information with the account, and add your full name, shipping address, billing address, email address, and phone number to the account just once. (You will not have to manually retype this information again in the future when visiting other websites and paying for purchases using PayPal.) Part of the PayPal account setup process includes using your email address as your account’s username, and creating a password for the account.

Moving forward, when you want to make an online purchase from a website that accepts PayPal, you simply click the Pay with PayPal option at checkout. Instead of providing your name, billing address, shipping address, email address, phone number, and credit card or debit card details, from the PayPal sign-in screen, you simply type in your PayPal email address and password.

PayPal then charges the account you have linked to your PayPal account and pays the online merchant directly. (For a consumer, using PayPal is free. The seller pays the fees, not the consumer.) Because the online merchant is not processing your payment, it is never given your debit card, credit card, checking account details, or billing address. The online seller is given only your name, shipping address, and other pertinent details.

You don’t have to manually type all your information each time you visit an online store that accepts PayPal, and you don’t have to worry about the online merchant gaining access to your payment details.

In addition to keeping your financial information private, all PayPal transactions are encrypted. PayPal also has its own fraud prevention department and dispute resolution center, and it provides purchase protection on eligible purchases.

Use PayPal to Pay for Online Purchases

When you want to use PayPal to pay for your online purchases, visit an online store that accepts PayPal and do your shopping as you normally would. Add items you want to buy to the shopping cart, and when you’re ready to pay, click on the Checkout (or equivalent button), and follow these steps:

Review your purchase, and click the PayPal button. Don’t fill out the contact information and shipping address fields. You will be transferred to PayPal’s secure service.

In the Pay with PayPal window, type the email address that’s associated with your PayPal account, followed by your PayPal Password. Click the Log In button to continue.

Review your order and select which linked and verified payment method you want to use. Make your selection, and confirm your Ship To address. If it’s different from the address that’s already stored in your PayPal account, click the Change option and provide the correct Ship To address. (Not shown.)

Scroll down and click the Continue button. (Not shown.)

You will be returned to the merchant’s website to complete and confirm your order. Fill out any additional information required by the merchant to complete and ship your order. Until you confirm the order, your PayPal account will not be charged.

Confirm the order with the online merchant; PayPal will charge your debit card account, credit card account, or checking account immediately, and the merchant will be paid by PayPal. Again, your payment details and billing address, for example, are not shared with the merchant. You will receive a confirmation from the online merchant as well as from PayPal. (Not shown.)

To manage your PayPal account, visit www.paypal.com and sign in using your email address and PayPal password. Click the Activity option from the menu to see a detailed listing of all your PayPal transactions sorted by date.