subject: The 5 Ps Of Online Shopping Risk Management [print this page] One of the features of the modern holiday season is the increase in online shopping. When presented the choice between traffic filled parking lots, packed malls and snail-paced lines or the convenience of shopping online, most people choose the latter. When you can do your holiday shopping without leaving the house, it can be a bit of a no-brainer.
There are risks to online shopping though. Which means your do need to take care. Luckily, there is simple risk management system you can follow for online shopping. When you buy on the web, you need to follow the five Ps.
Passwords
The first rule of any online risk management process is to use secure passwords. The most common mistake is to use the same password for everything. That may make it easier to remember them, but its also a huge security risk. When you set up passwords for sites where youll be spending money make sure you use a different, more complex, password. With so much online shopping done through mobile, make sure you password protect your devices with a separate password too.
Pricing
Take care when choosing which sites and which sellers you buy from. Keep an eye on pricing. If a price on an unfamiliar website seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Protection
If you do find something on a site youve never used before, you need to make sure that the checkout is secure. This also goes back to standard online risk management. Whenever youre inputting personal information, but especially if youre entering financial info, make sure the URL starts https rather than http. That means the site is using a secure server.
Payment Method
In risk management, if you cant prevent a risk you should try to mitigate potential damage. Some payment methods offer one or both of those options. PayPal offers great protection for online shoppers, as they protect your purchase for 45 days after a sale. Alternatively, if you dont use PayPal its advisable to use a prepay credit card or a low limit card thats only for online shopping. That way if your details are compromised, the damage will be limited.
Privacy
The final P is yet another that would make a list of standard online risk management tips. Privacy is important to everyone, but many people give it away all too freely online. Most online forms have minimum requirements for information sharing, its important that you dont share more than you have to. This is especially true in locations that take payment details.
by: Gizga
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