Safer shopping on the Internet – four hot tips.

There is currently a lot of talk in the media about the fraudulent use of credit and debit cards on the internet. As a leading merchant of DIY products we do get asked by customers on our thoughts on internet fraud and we do give advice when people ask.

Here are some pointers on how to combat fraudulent use of your card and also how to verify that the merchant you are entrusting your details to, is genuine.

• The first bit of advice is common sense really, if an offer on the internet looks too good to be true it probably is. Customers quite often say “I have seen such and such on such and such web site and it is much cheaper.” When we investigate we tend to find the following:

1. The website is situated off shore and has no address details. The only contact details are perhaps an email address and/or a telephone number.

2. The model being offered is not the current model. So the merchant has purchased a bulk load of discontinued items and is able to offer them for sale at a reduced price.

3. The web site is doing what is known as “drop shipping” which in itself is a perfectly respectable method of selling product. It involves a merchant taking orders via a website and forwarding them directly to a supplier who then send the goods directly to the customer on the merchants behalf. The problem with this can be after sales support as the merchant has no stock to speak of and therefore finds it difficult to deal with returns and the provision of spare parts etc. It is therefore important to establish the returns policy and what level of after sales support can be provided.

So in summary:

“If an offer on the internet looks too good to be true it probably is.”

• Security measures employed by the website you are visiting are crucial. The key elements to look for are as follows:

1. When you reach the page where you are being asked for your card details look at the web address. If it does not start with https:// then do not put your card details in. HTTPS stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol over Secure Socket Layer and it is the secure socket layer that is the crucial part here. For a detailed description of how this works please visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Https .
2. A padlock symbol in the bottom right hand side of your browser window. This again confirms that you are on a secure page.
3. Look for an SSL certificate on the home page of the web site. You can click on this to check that it is still valid and that it is registered to the site you are looking to purchase from.

So in summary:

“Look for https://.”

“Look for the padlock symbol.”

“Click on the security certificate to check it is valid.”

• Contact the company directly, for the price of a phone call you can quickly gauge if the site is staffed by competent people. Ask a technical question about the product you are looking to purchase and see if you get a satisfactory response. We have a dedicated technical team at the DIY Essentials Group and also have direct contact with the suppliers for the more advanced questions.

Whilst on the telephone it is also worth asking a few questions such as:

1. If the goods are not suited can you return them for a full refund?

2. How many days after purchase can you return the goods?

3. Can you order a sample?

4. Are spare parts readily available?

5. Are the goods in stock?

6. How quickly will the goods be delivered?

7. What courier will they be travelling by?

8. Will you get a tracking number?

9. If I purchase from you what name will appear on my statement?

So in summary:

“Contact the company on the telephone and ask questions.”

• Use a credit card and not a debit card. Your debit card details would generally give a fraudster access to your bank account, whilst a credit card does offer some protection in that if you can prove the transaction was fraudulent you will be able to recover the monies. If you are very nervous about online fraud it may even be worth setting up a separate bank account that you only use for your online shopping.

So in summary:

“Use a Credit and not a Debit card for your online purchases.”