It’s easy to see why so many of us now prefer to shop online: we have access to literally anything we could possibly want without having to leave the door (or even get dressed, for that matter).
But shopping online also has its setbacks, especially when it comes to privacy. It’s harder to control how your personal data gets used, but you’ve often got no choice but to share it when you’re creating an account and making purchases.
If you’ve recently fallen for a scam online or you just want to stay safe when you’re buying things virtually, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’re discussing all the best ways to protect your privacy when you’re shopping online.
- Limit How Often You Give Out Your Real Number
When you’re creating an account or even before you check out, many online stores now require you to share your phone number. This is often unavoidable as you’ll be sent a verification code that you’ll have to enter to confirm your details before you can proceed—but you don’t necessarily have to use your real number.
If you just need a one-time verification code and don’t want to share your personal number, a good alternative is to use an online SMS verification receiving tool, like https://www.smspool.net/. These services give you a temporary phone number that you can use to receive verification codes, so you can sign up while keeping your personal details private, preventing companies from being able to store or sell your contact info.
- Use a Secure Connection
Be extremely wary about shopping when you’re on a public Wi-Fi network, like at your local McDonald’s or grocery store—these are a hacker’s playground.
If you shop while you’re connected to an unsecured network, your’re putting all your passwords, payment details, and personal info at risk. That’s why you should always use a secure, private Wi-Fi connection (like your home Wi-Fi) when you’re shopping, or, at the very least, use a VPN to encrypt your data.
- Check for Website Security
Before you enter your payment details on a website, make sure to look at the website address (the URL that you’ll find in the address bar of your web browser)—especially if you’ve never shopped there before.
A good mark of a secure site is when the web address starts with https, not just http. The extra “s” is easy to miss, but it’s worth looking out for since it means the site encrypts your data. Some browsers also display a padlock icon in the address bar, which tells you that the connection is secure. If you’re using a site that doesn’t have these security features, shop elsewhere (there are plenty of others that do).
- Don’t Save Your Payment Info
And finally, if you get the choice to save your payment info so you can check out faster in the future, don’t do it.
Yes, this makes shopping more convenient, but it also increases the risk of your info being stolen if the company has a data breach. Instead, you’ll want to spend that extra time entering your payment details manually each time, or, at least, use a secure payment service that doesn’t store your card info.