Last month
I promised to continue on with my article “how not to get hacked” but I hadn’t
notice Santa time was so near. Consequently I’ll keep part two of that article
until the new year, God willing. This month I’ll deal with a couple of issues
that always arise around this time of high stress.
As more and more presents are purchased online you should take some basic steps to avoid some criminal getting hold of your credit card details and or scamming you.
#1 Where possible use paypal when buying online.(www.paypal.com) If you don’t have paypal setup an account and ensure the password is unique and complex enough to avoid pass-by hacker attacks.
#2 Avoid using your regular credit cards for buying online. During the boom many of you got your credit card bumped up to thousands of euros. If a criminal gets hold of that card they will have a field day, not the mention the problems it will cause you getting a new card.
#3 Use a prepaid credit card(even with your paypal account). You can buy a Swirl Prepaid Mastercard (www.swirlcard.com/) locally in Laytown at O’Reilly’s Supermarket for 7 euro and top it up immediately with 250 euro. If you register the card you can top it up to a maximum of 2,500 per year. Thus you can limit the damage if your card is stolen.
#4 Caveat Emptor (“Let the buyer beware”) applies when it comes to “great” deals like a 200 euro iphone 6. The scammers will be in full swing for Christmas. Be cautious about buying from unknown retailers or the “super deal” deals.
Technology Prices
The range of technology items available is staggering and frankly mind boggling. You must do your research up front before being able to compare models and brands no matter what “gizmo” you are buying. A recent example of this was where I was quoted 180 euro for a combination tv receiver (satellite and saorview). Another retailer had an almost identical receiver for 69.95. That’s a serious price difference and you’ll find this type of pricing everywhere. Do your research and shop around.
I wish you all a very happy and safe Christmas. If that gizmo gives you trouble relax it’s the holidays and deal with it in the new year.
Oliver Reidy is a computer technician and has been in the industry since 1981.You can contact him via email at help.desk@reidyonline.com or at the telephone numbers listed on this page. This article, and all previous articles, are available to view online at http://reidyonline.blogspot.ie/ or www.reidyonline.com/blogspot.htm
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