So. Utah’s Ultimate List To Stop Scammers Dead In Their Tracks

Online shopping has become part of who we are now, but authorities are warning that for every shopper, there is a thief working hard to dishonestly take your money.

Here's a list of ways to make sure that doesn't happen this holiday season as we go "surfing" for that great deal:

1.  Only use sites that you're familiar with -- Amazon, BestBuy, Fanatics, Lowes, etc. If you're not familiar with the site, do a little research. Type the website's name and then scam in the search bar to see if they have many complaints.
2. Look for the padlock: James Mackay from MetaBlog.com says: "Before entering any information into a website, you should always check that the site is safe and secure. The first step is to hover your mouse over the URL and check the validity of the web address. You should look for a padlock symbol in the address bar and check that the URL begins with a ‘https://’ or ‘shttp://’. The ‘S’ indicates the web address has been encrypted and secured with an SSL certificate. Without HTTPS, any data passed on the site is insecure and could be intercepted by criminal third parties.
3. Don't use a debit card for online shopping. If a criminal steals your debit card details, they can clear out your personal account and it can be more difficult to reclaim the money. But credit card companies monitor for theft all the time.
4. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. If someone is offering a deal that is way below what all others are offering it for, well, Mom was right, it's usually too good to be true.
5. Be wary of gift cards. They are the currency of choice for scammers, who will often sell gift cards with little or no value left on them.
6. If they want too much information, that's a red flag. From Webroot.com: "Expect to provide some method of payment, shipping address, telephone number, and email address, but if the merchant requests other information, walk away. You never want to give them your bank account information, social security information, or driver’s license number."
7. Don't reuse passwords. Never use the same password from one of your "regular" websites. Scammers will try to log on as you and you're basically giving them permission.
8. Make sure to see the transaction all the way through. A lot of shopping sites will add exorbitant shipping fees right at the very end.
9. Read the fine print. It's a pain, but know what sort of contract you're entering into.

Get our free mobile app