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Page 16 December 11,2022 StarNews www.starnewsgaonline.com
Suggested tips for safe online shopping this holiday season
Merry Christmas 2022
(BPT) - Shopping online during the holi
days can simplify gift giving but also leaves
you vulnerable to potential fraud. According
to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, thou
sands of people become victims of holiday
scams, robbing them of their personal infor
mation, money and holiday spirit.
While you know that online scams happen,
you may think it’s unlikely to happen to you.
You’re not alone. According to a recent fraud
research report, nearly half of those surveyed
were confident they could recognize a scam.
However, nearly 3 in 4 people typically
responded to common terms and phrases
fraudsters use in scam emails and texts.
Make sure you’re shopping safely this holi
day season by using the following online
shopping security tips.
1. Pay securely online: As you shop
online, take a moment to look at the web
site’s URL to ensure that it begins with
“https.” The “s” at the end confirms a secure
connection. You can also look at the corner
of the address bar for a padlock symbol,
which shows there is a secure connection
between your browser and the website’s
server.
For Visa card members, you can use click
to pay with Visa for an extra layer of protec
tion. This feature allows online shoppers to
Ways to stay safe
this holiday season
(BPT) - While it’s the season for festivities
and numerous joyous activities, a lot of mis
haps can happen during the holidays, from
baking snafus and turkey fires to decor disas
ters and pet problems. Fortunately, some
smart preparation and mindful steps will help
keep you and loved ones safe and jolly
throughout the season.
Prioritize cooking and baking safety: Food is
the center of many holiday celebrations, and
it’s easy for holiday hosts to become over
whelmed while cooking and baking. In 2021,
State Farm reported $142 million in total
claim costs for grease fires and cooking-related
fires. Thanksgiving is the peak day for home
cooking fires, followed by Christmas Day and
Christmas Eve, according to the National Fire
Protection Association. No matter what
you’re whipping up, don’t get distracted. Use
clocks and alarms to your advantage and also
ask for help so more than one person is
watching foods and appliances when in use.
Prevent turkey fryer fires: Turkey is a main
stay of holiday celebrations and the center-
piece on many tables across the country as
family and friends gather. Frying a turkey has
become a popular method for cooking a bird,
but no matter your culinary skill level, a lot
can go wrong during the process. This year,
State Farm has already paid out a total of $4
million for outdoor cooking fires and expeas
that number to rise as we approach the holi
day season. Make sure the turkey is thawed
and dry before cooking. Turn off the burner
before lowering the turkey in oil, then turn it
on. Always place fryers away from garages
and trees and off decks. See here for more tips
before frying.
Mind the glow of candles: It’s hard to resist
the ambiance that candles create during the
holiday season. However, U.S. fire depart
ments responded to an average of 7,400 home
fires last year that were started by candles.
These fires cause $291 million in direct prop
erty damage annually. It’s important to burn
candles in short increments and in safe places,
keeping them away from kids, pets and holi-
See STAY SAFE page 20
quickly, easily and safely finish their holiday
purchases. You can rest easy knowing there
are multiple layers of security that help pro
tea you from payment fraud.
2. Pay securely in-app: While using the
same passwords for your shopping apps may
be easier, it is not the safest way to shop this
holiday season. If a data break occurs on just
one of the apps you use, all your other
accounts may also be compromised because
they use the same password.
Create a strong, unique password for each
account that is hard to guess. Better yet,
switch to fingerprint or facial recognition for
account login and payments when possible.
3. Look out for phishing scams: Be careful
of unsolicited and suspicious emails, texts or
phone calls. They may try to steal personal
information like your account number, user-
name and password. Phishing messages tend
to use phrases like “aa now,” “exclusive deal”
and “free gift” to create a sense of urgency and
reward, according to the fraud report.
If you receive something that looks and
sounds like a phishing scam, don’t click on
any links unless you can verify they’ll take
you where they say they will.
4. Update system and application soft
ware: Has it been a while since you’ve
updated your technologies’ software? If so,
you’re leaving yourself vulnerable to fraud
sters while shopping for your friends and
family.
Before you begin your online holiday
shopping, update the software on your com
puters, tablets and phones. Installing the latest
software helps patch any known vulnerabili
ties that allow cybercriminals to access your
important financial and identity information.
5. Turn on purchase alerts: Purchase
alerts are a simple but important security
tool. By turning on this feature during your
holiday shopping, you’ll receive near real
time notifications of transactions on your
account. This can help you confirm legiti
mate purchases and alert you to potential
fraud while you check the last few items off
your shopping list.
Using these five simple tips, you can shop
safely while making the season jolly and
bright for the ones you love. Make this holi
day shopping season even safer with Visa. To
learn more about how you can shop and pay
for gifts safely, visit Visa.com/Security.
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Financial Advisor
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