According to research from WNS DecisionPoint, e-commerce edged out traditional in-store shopping this holiday season. Additionally, even when shopping in brick-and-mortar stores, many shoppers viewed products online with their mobile device to see if they could get the product at a better price elsewhere.
Other research from GFK confirmed this trend. That study found 51% of shoppers purchased gifts online, and many used their mobile devices to plan and purchase. 82% of Millennials researched items on a mobile device (compared to 70% of Boomers and 63% of GenXers), and 60% purchased the gift (compared to 43% of Boomers and 45% of GenXers).
Even while Americans are doing so much online and mobile shopping, many are nervous. Netsparker found 44% of online shoppers are afraid their credit card information will be stolen from an online store, 39% worry their packages will be stolen from their doorstep, and 34% worry hackers will use malware to steal their credit card information.
Traditional shopping is not exempt from stress either. More than one-fourth (29%) of shoppers are worried someone could skim their bank or credit card information in-store, according to Netsparker.
While all of these are legitimate concerns, there are steps you can take to stay safe while shopping online. First, make sure you are only shopping from reputable companies. If you see an ad that looks too good to resist, do some research to make sure the company is legit. One way to ensure your checkout will be secure is to make sure the website begins with “https” instead of just “http.” The additional “s” means the site is using security protocols.
Next, if you are on public Wi-Fi, it is fine to do research, but wait until you are on a secure network at home or work to make the purchase. A thief could be sitting next to you at Starbucks and scanning the network to steal financial information. Additionally, some public Wi-Fi sources may be named after a restaurant or hotel and, thus, look legitimate, but they are actually run by a malicious entity looking to steal your information.
Finally, do not save your credit or debit card information with an online store. Companies are breached nearly every day, and if your information is stored on their server, it can be easily stolen. The relative inconvenience of entering your credit card information for each purchase is worth the hassle to keep your financial details safe.