\nOnline shopping may be convenient, cost-effective, and secure\u2014as long as you take certain precautions before making your purchase.\n
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Not all e-commerce sites provide the ideal conditions for safe online shopping. It\u2019s important to limit your shopping to encrypted websites, and only conduct transactions when you\u2019re on a trusted WiFi network. \u201cLook for a padlock symbol on the URL bar, as well as next to your WiFi network\u2019s name,\u201d advises Satish Kanwar, product director at Shopify.ca. \u201cFollowing these steps is the best way to ensure that your personal information is being transferred in the safest way possible.\u201d\n
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It\u2019s normal for online retailers to request additional details and preferences to make your online shopping experience more personalized. However, if they ask for too much information\u2014like your social insurance number, for instance\u2014that\u2019s a definite red flag.\n
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Avoid using the same password for every online shopping site you frequent. \u201cThat way, if your login information gets stolen on one website, your other accounts likely won\u2019t get compromised,\u201d says Kanwar.\n
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Any time you input personal or credit card information into a website, ensure the page is secured. Kanwar says that the quickest way to check for this is in the URL. \u201cThe website URL should start with https:\/\/ (rather than http:\/\/) and should have a padlock symbol to indicate that the page is secure.\u201d\n
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Kanwar warns consumers to regard sale-of-the-century price tags with a healthy dose of skepticism. \u201cWhen items are priced significantly lower than they should be, that should raise a flag about the legitimacy and authenticity of the website,\u201d he says. \u201cLow prices are enticing, but if it\u2019s too good to be true, it usually is.\u201d\n
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Safe online shopping sites have their toll-free customer service line or email address readily available. Kanwar also recommends reading over the website\u2019s refunds and exchanges policies: openness about these conditions is often a good indicator of credibility.\n
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While it\u2019s common practice for retailers to use pop-up ads for e-newsletters, promotions and flyers, Kanwar warns consumers to keep an eye out for phishing scams. \u201cPesky pop-ups are a way for scammers to lure or confuse online shoppers,\u201d he says. \u201cMake sure to have an ad-blocker installed when shopping on unfamiliar websites to avoid getting phished.\u201d\n
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Keep a close tab on your credit card statements, even after you\u2019ve received your purchased item. \u201cIt\u2019s always smart to ensure that there were no hidden charges tacked on, or unfamiliar names deducting from your account,\u201d Kanwar suggests.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Online shopping may be convenient, cost-effective, and secure\u2014as long as you take certain precautions before making your purchase. Only trust encrypted websites Not all e-commerce sites provide the ideal conditions for safe online shopping. It\u2019s important to limit your shopping to encrypted websites, and only conduct transactions when you\u2019re on a trusted WiFi network. \u201cLook\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24595,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[46,6,103,120,325,31,32],"class_list":{"0":"post-24592","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tie-life-style","8":"tag-life-hacks","9":"tag-life-style","10":"tag-money-hacks","11":"tag-save-money","12":"tag-shopping","13":"tag-tips","14":"tag-tricks"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/online-shopping-tips.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inovatestory.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}