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Tips for online shoppers: Improve your cyber security According to a recent Business Software Alliance http://www.bsa.org consumer survey, 63 percent of U.S. Internet users will do some of their holiday shopping online and have many security concerns about making purchases over the Internet. Approximately 75 percent of U.S. respondents are concerned a great deal or a fair amount about the following: information being sold to a third party (83 percent), information stolen from Web databases (79 percent), transmitting a credit card number (76 percent), transmitting address or personal information (77 percent) and receiving unwanted emails (72 percent)."The Better Business Bureau advises online shoppers to make their holiday purchases from reliable sites that have satisfactory marketplace records and that willingly provide customer service contacts, a written refund policy, shipping/transaction costs and security and privacy protection information," said Ken Hunter, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus and BBBOnLine (http://www.bbbonline.org). The study also found that when it comes to purchasing software online, 75 percent in the U.S. say it is more important to obtain legitimate software than it is to save money and risk buying fraudulent products. The study, conducted by the independent research firm, Ipsos Public Affairs, also showed that U.S. respondents will use the Internet to purchase many different types of gifts this holiday season. Forty-three percent and 49 percent of U.S. shoppers will purchase software and computer hardware, respectively, online this year. Here are some tips from BSA, the Better Business Bureau and WinXPnews for any of you online shoppers contemplating software purchases and guidance on how to improve your cyber security: Trust Your Instincts. Check the online seller's price against the estimated retail value of the software. Whether it is being sold as new or used, if a price for software seems too good to be true, it probably is. Make Sure It's Authentic and Read the Label. Be suspicious of software products that do not include proof of authenticity, such as original disks, manuals, licensing, warranties, etc. Install Anti-Virus Software. Does your computer(s) have anti-virus software installed? Most anti-virus software includes an automatic update feature. Make sure it is activated. Take special care to avoid sellers offering "back-up" copies. This is a clear indication that the software is illegal. Be Cyber Secure. Report attacks on your PC to local law enforcement agencies and the IT provider. Check for Security Updates. Security updates should be checked every 30 days for programs installed on computers and operating systems. Allow for automatic updating and/or subscribe to a notification service provided by the vendor. Install a Firewall. A firewall will protect your computer(s) from unauthorized access to and use by hackers. Report Piracy. Buyers suspecting software piracy, counterfeit software and/or fraud on auction sites should contact law enforcement agencies and BSA at 1-888-NOPIRACY or www.bsa.org/usa. For assistance in resolving a dispute with an online merchant, consumers can file a complaint at the BBB Web site (www.bbb.org). Install anti-spam and anti-spyware software on your PC. Many scams are sold via spam, and often spam also carries a malignant payload like spyware that allows snoops to see what you are doing or even take control of your PC remotely and use it for their own dark purposes. Anti-spyware scans your machine and gets rid of these cyber pests that could cause identity theft. Spend a little time to check the Privacy Policy of the sites where you are buying your gifts, and do not opt into their newsletters if it is clear they will sell your personal information to other parties. Have a great shopping experience! |
