Ten Ways To Stay Safe This Christmas

With online shopping becoming increasingly popular, many people are at risk from fraudsters during the Christmas period, so IT services provider Unisys has pulled together “10 ways to beat the cheats”.

Next Monday (7 December) is set to be the most lucrative online shopping day in the UK, with consumers set to spend £417 million throughout the day, or an average of £17 million each hour, according to research by Kelkoo.

Unisys is warning of a potential spike in fraudulent activity during the Christmas period, as fraudsters increasingly take advantage of the festive shopping season to steal people’s personal details and consequently their identity. Indeed, Unisys recently identified in its Security Index that consumers are most concerned about identity theft, even more so than national security worries or the ability to meet their financial obligations.

In addition, CIFAS, the UK’s fraud prevention service, has reported that the number of victims of ID fraud rose by a third in 2009 compared to the previous year.

“While Christmas is normally a time of goodwill among men it is also a time when fraudsters prey on consumers and businesses that let their guard down,” said Neil Fisher, vice president of global security solutions at Unisys. The cardinal rule is don’t be too trusting. Check everything and don’t expect the system to always protect you. Above all, take responsibility for your own security.”

“So when you plug your new Christmas gadget into the Internet, make sure you’ve already enabled the firewall,” Fisher warned. “But the sky isn’t falling either; you can beat the cheats by proactively following a few simple precautions.”

So in order to make sure that criminals and ner-do-wells don’t spoil your Christmas fun, Unisys has come up with the following “ten ways to beat the cheats”.

Online Shopping Threats

The advice here is somewhat predictable. Always shop on safe sites, and look for the padlock icon at the bottom of the screen. Try and use a credit card rather than a debit card as a credit card offers consumers more protection. If using websites like Amazon or eBay, read the seller feedback and be aware that poor ratings or no ratings at all usually mean the seller is definitely not someone you should be doing business with. Also check your bank statements regularly for any unexpected ‘purchases’.

Seasonal Spyware

Beware the Christmas e-card, as the number of malicious e-cards circulating is expected to rise this year. Don’t open an email or attachment from an unknown sender and don’t download ‘exe’ files as these often contain nastiness such as adware, malware, unwanted downloads and spyware. If you absolutely must open a file, drag it into your ‘junk’ email folder first, as this allows you to check the links are legitimate. If you do get caught out, run a virus scan immediately.