The holiday season is a great time to start online shopping. You can get great deals online, plus you can do comparison shopping to get the best price on a specific item. Online shopping is fast and easy. It can save lots of time and lots of gas, which is very important this year. Online shopping is convenient. You can shop any time of day or night. When the shopping is done, you can have packages delivered straight to your friends and family. Plus, most online stores provide gift wrapping as an added service.
How do you make the best selection?
Many online stores have user reviews from shoppers just like you, giving their honest feedback about the selections so you can choose the item that best suits the gift recipient. Shopper reviews may not substitute for actually putting your hands on the product in a store, but you'll be surprised how accurate they can be.
Tips for SAFE Online Shopping
Online shopping is more secure than the traditional over the counter shopping if you follow some basic safety precaustions:
- Shop at name brand stores. For example - www.sears.com or www.amazon.com
You know these stores by name and you know they will treat your information securely.
- Make sure the final purchasing step is encrypted. (see images below)
- the website address should begin with https:
- a padlock will appear in the corner of your browser.
In a previous Ask the Guru segment we discussed using free web mail. This is a great opportunity to create a second webmail account just to conduct financial business. When you buy things online, the stores send the purchase receipts via email and a webmail account can help keep your purchase transaction information separate from your personal email.
