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As the internet's popularity surged in the late 1990s and more people were starting to make online purchases, there were also questions about how secure those purchases really were. You didn't have to look far to find a story about someone who had a bank account cleared or a credit card maxed out by internet thieves.
Stories like this still happen today, but overall the internet is a more secure place to shop now than ever before. Here are some things that have made the internet more secure since its early days as well as a few tips for making safe online purchases.
Encryption methods have improved; they're much harder to crack than they were in the early days. If you're visiting a website and it has a security certificate, you can rest assured that any information you use on the site will be safe.
Still, it's not impossible for hackers to obtain financial information, but it happens far less often than you might think.
There are also fewer online vendors in general. After the dot com bubble burst years ago, there was a mass exodus of shady and illegitimate websites from the internet. There are still websites out there that scam people out of money, but it's usually easy to spot them.
If you've been using the internet awhile and you're familiar with online shopping, you'll probably be able to tell a reputable site from a scam. Of course, you can always stick to the popular and well-known sites such as eBay and Amazon. PayPal can also provide an extra layer of protection for your online transactions.
There are more security measures in place to prevent fraud by keeping thieves from ever getting your information. Many websites require that you sign up for a membership before you can buy something from their webstores. A lot of them have special encryption and even security checks beyond the typical password that may require you to answer a special question each time you log in. This is very common when it comes to the interface of online banks and other sites that store sensitive financial information of yours. All of these things can act as extra obstacles when it comes to protecting you from hackers.
So don't stress out too much over making purchases online. Just be smart about the sites you purchase from, and pay attention to how the site handles the checkout process, and you should be safe doing your shopping online.
Stories like this still happen today, but overall the internet is a more secure place to shop now than ever before. Here are some things that have made the internet more secure since its early days as well as a few tips for making safe online purchases.
Encryption methods have improved; they're much harder to crack than they were in the early days. If you're visiting a website and it has a security certificate, you can rest assured that any information you use on the site will be safe.
Still, it's not impossible for hackers to obtain financial information, but it happens far less often than you might think.
There are also fewer online vendors in general. After the dot com bubble burst years ago, there was a mass exodus of shady and illegitimate websites from the internet. There are still websites out there that scam people out of money, but it's usually easy to spot them.
If you've been using the internet awhile and you're familiar with online shopping, you'll probably be able to tell a reputable site from a scam. Of course, you can always stick to the popular and well-known sites such as eBay and Amazon. PayPal can also provide an extra layer of protection for your online transactions.
There are more security measures in place to prevent fraud by keeping thieves from ever getting your information. Many websites require that you sign up for a membership before you can buy something from their webstores. A lot of them have special encryption and even security checks beyond the typical password that may require you to answer a special question each time you log in. This is very common when it comes to the interface of online banks and other sites that store sensitive financial information of yours. All of these things can act as extra obstacles when it comes to protecting you from hackers.
So don't stress out too much over making purchases online. Just be smart about the sites you purchase from, and pay attention to how the site handles the checkout process, and you should be safe doing your shopping online.
This the end of - Be Safe in the Internet