With Christmas just around the corner, many of us are hurrying around trying to find last-minute gifts for loved ones. But, whenever there’s a large-scale event, cybercriminals will take full advantage. The lead up to Christmas is always a mad time, with lots of people panic buying. Whenever people are in this frame of mind, cyber criminals are ready to take advantage.
You could get text messages and emails pretending to be from courier companies or retail companies. You’ll see bogus websites appearing offering stock of items that are sold out everywhere else. In addition, people’s shopping habits have changed with the Covid-19 pandemic pushing more shopping online rather than going to the shops.
Sadly, all of this means these scammers will make a lot of money during the Christmas holidays! So we’re going to discuss five Christmas
cyber security tips to help keep you safe online during the Christmas holidays.
Five Christmas Cyber Security Tips to Keep You Safe Online:
- Be vigilant of emails and texts
You might get an email from scammers pretending to be that favourite retailer of yours or from fake couriers letting you know a parcel is due to be delivered. All you have to do is click on the link and enter some details, but before doing this, you need to double-check what website that link is taking you to, as it may not be real. For more help on this, please see our video on
our YouTube channel and supporting blog on
how to spot a phishing attack.
- Be careful where you shop online
Try to use reputable companies or companies that you’ve used before. For example, when you’re on a website and looking to buy things, double-check the domain at the top of the page – what does it say? For example, when you’re on the John Lewis website, it should say johnlewis.com and nothing else. So, if you’re on a website and the John Lewis logo is there, but it doesn’t say johnlewis.com as the domain, then it’s a bogus website.
- Use a credit card as payment when shopping online
Where possible, try and use a credit card as payment when online shopping. Many credit card companies will refund you if you don’t receive the goods or pay for something, and it isn’t quite right when delivered. This provides extra protection that you don’t get with a debit card, so we recommend using a credit card wherever possible.
- Be careful what information you give to retailers
This goes for any retailers you shop online with. We’ve often got long forms to fill out whenever we buy something online, with retailers wanting a whole host of information. You should only give them the information they need for you to make the order, which is usually your name, address, and payment information. If the form fill box isn’t marked with an asterisk indicating you have to fill it in, then don’t; this goes for any purchases online, keep the other information to yourself and keep it private.
- Keep your online accounts secure
Do you use strong passwords when using your online accounts? Do you use
two-factor authentication on your Amazon account? If someone hacked into one of your accounts, would they have access to all your other accounts because your passwords are all the same? Consider using a password manager in the year 2022, so you can improve your security online if so!
And that’s it, five easy and simple Christmas cyber security tips that you can use to ensure that you stay safe online. Remember, it’s the little things that make all the difference.
We hope you have a very Merry Christmas! For more advice on staying safe online or to learn more about the
importance of cyber security, please
get in touch with us at Integral IT today.
