Holiday: Unlimint proffers security tips for online shopping

The Christmas festive season comes with shopping sprees especially because of the deals and sales that are peculiar to this season.

However, amidst the excitement that comes with price-slashes and the shopping frenzies, it’s important to not forget the cybercriminals also working overtime to take advantage of unsuspecting customers who fail to shop safely.

This is why Unlimint, providers of innovative simple business interface that enables payments to move seamlessly has proffered tips to shop securely this holiday season as follows: “Only shop on secure and familiar Siteshoppers such as Unlimint and make sure to stop and check each website you are shopping on to ensure it is secure before you input any personal or financial information. A secure website’s URL begins with ‘https’. Also, look out for the padlock symbol in the address bar just before the web address. With these in place, information entered into the site is mostly encrypted and cannot be intercepted by anyone. Avoid clicking on links that promise unreasonably great deals; if it sounds too good to be true, then your instinct is correct.

“Don’t Overshare: Always give as little information as possible and be alert to the kind of information the site or merchant is requesting for. Provide reputable sellers with the minimum personal information necessary to complete a purchase. If a merchant requests more information than you are comfortable providing, stop the transaction and close the website immediately. Also, before committing your information to a site, you should read their privacy policy to find out where and how your information will be shared.”

The continued: “Update and protect your passwords regularly and protect them as they are usually a target for hackers looking to gain unauthorised access to your accounts.

“Enable Two-Factor Authentication: Passwords alone no longer provide adequate security. As an online shopper, it is important to activate two-factor (or multi-factor) authentication on your payment channels – a security process that requires a purchaser to verify themselves through two or more authentication methods to complete a transaction. It serves as an extra layer of protection between you and any fraudulent transactions. For example, if your debit card details have been compromised, while you should contact your bank immediately, if you have 2FA activated on your bank account, you will know when someone attempts a transaction using your debit card.

“Only shop via familiar websites and trusted payment gateways: Payment gateways are the final part of the online shopping process where payment is collected to conclude the transaction. Once you click “Checkout” and begin entering your payment details, which is where a payment gateway takes over. Trusted payment solution providers such as Unlimint are responsible for handling this part of your transaction, by working with the merchant or your bank to ensure that within the blink of an eye, you go from certified window shopper to confirmed owner.”