Tips for safe shopping online Words by Ren Alcantara
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or various reasons, not the least of which is the need to stay home because of the pandemic, making purchases online has become almost exclusively how many of us shop. This is great because it helps smaller businesses stay afloat and keeps buyers from having to expose themselves to the virus. There are, however, some things we should keep in mind when shopping online, so we aren’t just trading one set of risks for another. Many people are out there trying to pull a fast one on anyone they can, so be careful and keep yourself from being one of their victims.
Consider using prepaid cards Lots of local financial services offer prepaid cards that work in place of credit cards for making purchases. They come with their card numbers, can be tied to your name, and are reusable, but come with a crucial difference. Unlike actual credit cards that are funded by banks whom you have to pay back at a later date, or debit cards that are directly tied to your bank accounts, prepaid cards need to have money loaded onto them before they can be used. Since you still have to transfer funds from your account, this doesn’t give you any free money (nothing does). It does, however, serve as a buffer between your purchase and your main account. If you were unfortunate enough to have your credit card compromised, whoever did it could rack up quite a bill. Worse, if someone got access to your debit card, they could empty your account. The prepaid option means whoever uses it can only spend as much as is available in the prepaid account, not a centavo more. This also has the added benefit of being another check for you to go through before making a purchase. Financial responsibility and only making purchases you need and can afford rests in your hands, but this can be a helpful thing for some.
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FEBRUARY 2021
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