Better Business Bureau’s Top 10 `Cyber Monday’ shopping tips

by Sheryl Bilbrey

“Cyber Monday,” the Monday after Thanksgiving, has joined “Black Friday,” the day after Thanksgiving, as one of the most popular days to shop for the holidays because of the high online shopping activity. Shopping online means avoiding the crowds, but it can also open the buyer to attacks from scammers and hackers.

In order to fight these online grinches, the San Diego Better Business Bureau (BBB) is recommending the following10 tips for staying safe when holiday shopping online:

(1) Protect your computer with the most recent updates for spam filters, anti-virus and anti-spyware software and a secure firewall;

(2) Shop on trustworthy retailer websites that shows the BBB seal;

(3) Protect your personal information (if you can’t find the site’s privacy policy, it’s a red flag that personal information may be sold to others without permission);

(4) Beware of deals that sound too good to be true;

(5) Beware of phishing, which are e-mails claiming problems with an order or an account to lure the “buyer” into revealing financial personal information;

(6) Confirm your online purchase is secure by looking in the address box for the “s” in https:// and in the lower-right corner for the “lock” symbol before paying;

(7) Pay with a credit card because under federal law you can dispute the charges you do not receive the item;

(8) Keep paper documentation of your order;

(9) Check your credit card statements often;  

(10) Know your rights (federal law requires that orders made by mail, phone or online be shipped by the date promised or, if no delivery time was stated, within 30 days; if the goods aren’t shipped on time, you can cancel and demand a refund).

For more free consumer protection tips and business reviews on more than 50,000 local companies, phone the BBB at (858) 496-2131 or visit www.bbb.org.

#  #  #

Sheryl Bilbrey is president/CEO of the San Diego Better Business Bureau.

*  *  *

*  *  *