This last Monday was the biggest “shipping” day of the year for Holiday shoppers, according to local news reports. The story showed the local post offices crammed with boxes and gave tips on how to send your packages efficiently.

Holiday Shopping Online

Back in July of 2015, the search giant, Google, ran a report showing online shopping trends from last year to prepare people for the 2015 Holiday season possibilities, and even though it noted that 48% of holiday shoppers “said they did the majority of their shopping on or before Cyber Monday,” the rest of us suffer the consequences of being procrastinators.

Last year 40% of holiday shopping occurred online, according to this report. What that means to us is that it is probably even higher this year, and the Internet is going crazy. From the looks of things in our very own data center we can say that people have increased activity, whether it is the colder weather and shorter hours, students studying, or browsing the Internet for holiday research (which according to the study, 78% used the Internet last year for research.)

So if you have now just started your holiday shopping like we are, and are doing most of it online, we wanted to offer you a few safety pointers.

According to the website, StaySafeOnline.org, a lot of it is common sense and simple reminders, like the fact that a clean machine with up-to-date software and security settings should be used for purchases. Below are a few more things to remember:

Think Before you Act.

If it is “too good to be true,” then it always is. Don’t get caught up in the scams of “FREE” and “HE LOST 30 LBS IN A WEEK” tricks. Unethical online advertising with bogus back links can take you down a trail of gathering as much information from you as they can in order to steal your identity or hack into your bank account. As soon as they ask for any type of payment information, RUN.

Make Sure the Site is Legit.

Check to see if there is a “closed padlock” on your web browser’s address bar or a URL address that begins with s-http or https. This indicates that the purchase you are making is encrypted or secured. If it is a new site? Check out online reviews.

Get Savvy about Wi-Fi Hotspots.

Do NOT share personal or financial information over an unsecured network, which is one that doesn’t require a password to access. (GoBrolly Wi-Fi is always secure.)

Protect Your Personal Information.

Only fill out required fields needed to complete the transaction. Check the website’s privacy policy. Make sure you understand how your information will be stored and used.

Keep a Paper Trail.

Save records of your online transactions, print out product and description, price, confirmation code, terms of sale and copies of email with seller.

GoBrolly wishes you a very satisfying online shopping experience and more importantly, health and happiness for the holiday season.

Sources:
Think with Google