How you can safely and securely shop online

This article is for you if you are new to online shopping or want to eliminate the fear of online shopping (Online Officinaphobia)

Let us get started!

Check the websites domain name

Before you click on a link, make sure you know where the link will go. A lot of scam websites will use a domain name similar to a company name that you’re already familiar with. Look for slight differences in the domain name, such as "https://thatblokes.co.za" (notice the "S" which was added to the domain name)

Check if the website is secure

Only enter personal details on secure websites. Look for an HTTPS connection. HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is an encryption protocol that sends data between your web browser and the websites you visit. HTTPS is the secure version of HTTP.

Most web browsers now include a color-change lock on the left side of the location bar before the domain name to indicate that the site has been verified as legitimate.

Use a website check-safety-tool

To check if a specific website is safe, use a website safety checker like Google Safe Browsing. Google’s Safe Browsing technology examines billions of URLs per day looking for unsafe websites. Copy and paste the website URL into the search box and hit Enter.

Look where the website redirects to when choosing a payment method

After adding all your products to the shopping cart you have to go through a few checkout pages to complete your purchase.

When you get to the payment method page and select the desired payment option, the page will in most cases redirect to a payment service provider like Payfast for instance.

Your bank or card details are entered on a safe and secure payment service provider website and redirected back to the online shop after payment has been made.

What does this mean for you?

• None of your personal card or bank details are entered or stored on the online shop, but on the payment service providers website (Payfast).
• PSP websites have numerous security checks in place for fraud detection and because they handled the transaction for you, you can easily report a fraudulent transaction to them for them to investigate.
• 3D Secure is used. With 3D Secure, a number of additional steps are added to the credit card process with the aim of authenticating the cardholder performing the transaction.