Phishing campaigns that try to dupe consumers into giving away personal and financial information tend to rise during the holiday season, use the following tips to prevent falling victim to cyber criminals.
If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is.
A common tactic by cyber criminals is using extremely low prices on popular items, such as electronics, to lure in potential victims.
Use a credit card instead of a debit card.
If your credit card data is used for something nefarious, it’s easier to resolve issues with a credit card company than with your bank.
Take advantage of the alert features on your credit card.
These alerts can warn you of abnormal account activity, which are helpful any time during the year but are especially useful during the busy holiday shopping season.
Never purchase merchandise from a website that does not use secure HTTPS for the purchase process.
Check the address line of your browser during the purchase process; it should start with HTTPS.
Ensure your computer has the most current security software patches installed.
Once a security patch is available, cyber criminals have all the information they need to attack devices that have not been updated.