*Cybersecurity experts offer consumers practical measures on cybersecurity while they are shopping online this holiday season in smartphones, laptops, and other electronic devices

Isola Moses | 绿帽献妻

Cybersecurity security experts have advocated the need for consumers to

be vigilant in order to reduce the risk of scams or falling prey to hackers, especially in this holiday season.

With retailers cranking out holiday sales earlier than ever this year, consumers have been checking gifts off their lists for months now.

绿帽献妻, however, learnt that amid scrolling through the endless deals, experts have asked: Are you taking the steps necessary to protect your personal information and avoid internet scams and hackers?

A cybersecurity company, in fresh study conducted by Norton, is urging consumers to think about their cybersecurity while they鈥檙e shopping online this holiday season.

Kevin Roundy, Researcher and Technical Director at Norton Labs, said: 鈥淲e want to help bring back the joy of the holiday season and empower everyone with the resources they need to shop online safely.

鈥淔rom inflation to supply chain issues, there are so many things out of our control this holiday season.”

Roundy stated: Taking the time to pause and take proactive steps to protect your digital and financial life before Cyber Monday is one way everyone can take back control.鈥�

Most Americans, for instance, are shopping online, according to Norton鈥檚 study.

The report also revealed that 95 percent of Americans plan to shop online this holiday season, while 40 percent would be willing to risk their personal information to land the perfect gift.

Besides, the study indicated that just 30 percent of survey respondents said that they feel very confident about safely shopping online this holiday season.

This makes it all the more important for consumers to take their cybersecurity seriously when online shopping.

General tips for online safety

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) outlined several tips for making it through the holiday shopping season as safely as possible.

One of their most important tips is staying on top of software updates on smartphones and laptops and enabling automatic updates when possible to ensure all devices are running with the most up-to-date operating systems.

This will make you less susceptible to hackers and keep your information as protected as possible.

CISA said: 鈥淏efore making any online purchases, make sure the device you鈥檙e using to shop online is up to date.

鈥淣ext, take a look at your accounts and ask, do they each have strong passwords? And even better, if two-factor authentication is available, are you using it?鈥�

When it comes to where you鈥檙e shopping, Norton encourages consumers to only shop on trusted sites. It can be helpful to search for businesses on the Better Business Bureau or sites like trustpilot.com.

Expert said, when all else fails, look for consumer reviews, and make sure real people have safely bought and received their purchases.

Safe, legitimate Web sites will often show a lock icon in the corner of the URL bar, which means that the site is privacy protected.

If you鈥檙e unsure about a site, go back to trusted sites that you鈥檝e ordered from before because you know they are safe.

It is also recommended that consumers do not save their personal information, including password, credit card information, bank accounts, etc., on any website.

A digital wallet like Google Pay or Apple Pay is often more secure, as retailers don鈥檛 have direct access to your credit card numbers. However, saved information on retailers鈥� websites makes consumers more vulnerable in the event of a data breach.

Several consumers may receive phishing emails that look like they are from reputable retailers. Security experts, nonetheless, warn consumers to be on the lookout for any deal that looks too good to be true.

While nearly every store is running major sales during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it鈥檚 also the prime time for scammers to strike.

If you鈥檙e ever unsure about the validity of an email or a potential sale, check back with the original retailer or do more research.

Though the holiday season is hectic and it can be easy to just buy the first item you see on a website, it鈥檚 important to protect your digital and financial safety this time of year.

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