... Evaluate deals, check account statements

Chief information technology officer at The University of Technology, Jamaica, George Brown, is however warning consumers to be wary of deals that seem too good to be true.

“Do not make payments over public or open Wi-Fi. Review your online account settings and keep your payment information personal,” Brown said. “Develop good password habits, change them often, and use unique ones that are hard to guess.”

He also urged shoppers to watch out for fake online stores.

When possible, purchase from the online stores you already know, trust, and have done business with previously.

Bookmark online stores you have visited before and trust.

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE

Look out for prices that are significantly better than those you see on the established online stores.

If the deal sounds too good to be true, it may be fake.

Be suspicious if the website resembles the one you’ve used in the past, but the website domain name or the name of the store is slightly different.

“For example, you may be used to shopping at Amazon, whose website address is www.amazon.com, but end up shopping at a fake website that has a similar website address, where the letter ‘o’ is replaced with the number ‘0’,” he said.

In terms of online payment, Brown said that consumers should regularly review their credit card statements to identify suspicious charges. And, if possible, enable the option to notify them by email, text, or app every time a charge is made to your credit card.

“If you find any suspicious activity, call your credit card company right away and report it. Avoid using debit cards whenever possible. Debit cards take money directly from your bank account. If fraud has been committed, you’ll have a much harder time getting your money back,” Brown advised.