Shopping in the digital age is a great convenience for many people. It lets us find a wide variety of products and services all available at our fingertips. The best part is, we can shop for whatever we are looking for at any time of the day or night.
One downside of shopping online is the risk of information theft. Hackers are always working diligently to steal people's personal information. If you're not careful, you could be out thousands of dollars or more due to these online thieves.
Fortunately, there are ways to protect yourself online. You can find out about more resources online. Take some time to research options at Crypto Heads' Canada page and other sites. You can read about exchange rates, fees and ask questions about transaction security.
Here are a few online payments methods that can help you avoid hackers:
1. Prepaid cardsPrepaid credit cards are good for people who have less than stellar credit or are just starting to establish their credit history. With these cards, you can add a certain amount to their balance. Any purchases made using that card will be deducted from the balance. You usually won't need a bank account or other existing credit cards to qualify for a prepaid card. Transactions are safe and you are not liable for any fraudulent or unauthorized purchases, as long as such activities are reported relatively quickly. One downside is that some of these cards may have additional fees for activation or loading balances onto them.
2. Credit cards with disposable account numbersThis is a fairly new trend that adds an extra level of security. For companies that offer this service, you just have to log on to their website. From there, you can create your own individual sixteen-digit account number. The temporary account number will have its own security code and expiration code. The account number you created is only good for use with one vendor. You can have as many temporary account number for as many vendors as you'd like. It's a good way of keeping your information safe, as long as you remember which account number you're using for each respective vendor.
3. Secure credit cardsSome credit card companies will ask for a pre-selected password for use online. This is handy for sites that you use on a recurring basis. Right now, there aren't a lot of merchants that use this service, but more are being added on a regular basis. It just provides another way to keep your information safe from hackers and potential fraud online.
These are just some of the more popular ways that you can buy your favorite goods and services online without having to worry about hackers. Other ways include avoiding sending money by wire and never sending cash or cash equivalents unless you trust the seller implicitly. As a general rule of thumb, you should never send cash if it all possible, because once it's sent, it's very difficult to trace in case something goes wrong. Taking extra precautions to keep your information safe and secure can help you enjoy online shopping and finding items that can help fulfill your every need.