With Cyber Monday shopping and the start of the holiday shopping season, we recommend that you use your credit card as opposed to your debit card for online purchases. Credit cards provide more protection than debit cards. One of the biggest reasons is because debit cards are linked with bank accounts. If an identity thief compromises a debit card, the victim’s bank account can be immediately drained of all available funds -- leaving the cardholder without access to their money.
The risk of online fraud increases exponentially during the holiday shopping season. Online criminals will be stepping up their efforts to prey upon unsuspecting or unprepared consumers. The U.S. Secret Service has provided Best Practices suggestion such as:
- Keep software and antivirus updated
- Change passwords to online shopping site regularly
- Use a "credit card" as opposed to a debit card for better protection since a debit card is tied to your bank account
- Never use public Wi-Fi
- Be mindful of phishing schemes - emails and texts from unknown sources. Links and attachments can be a virus.
- Only use reputable businesses, and look for the security lock next to the web site address in your browser
- Never wire money directly to a seller
- Check your statement often for suspicious transaction charges