Paying Online - Pros And Cons
By Lisa Hood, Sat Dec 10th
Paying Online – Pros and Cons
I’ve been seduced by the convenience of online shopping! I’vebought movies, clothes, stamps, groceries, prescriptions, booksand jewelry online. During the Christmas Holidays, I wait withpeppermint breath for Saint UPS Driver Guy and his bag ofgoodies. While others fight mobs of angry shoppers, I browsethrough product descriptions at my leisure. I feel relativelysafe providing my credit card information despite the horrorstories of fraud and theft. I only buy from reputable merchants,those that are well known and publicized. That’s not to say Icouldn’t be fooled. It’s nearly impossible to tell whose who onthe Internet. Sure, a professional site may be one indicator,but anyone can hire a web designer. Recent research estimatesthat the number of households shopping online grew to over 18million in 2001. Here are some tips to help you decide if you’redealing with a trustworthy merchant:
Use a secure browser - software that encrypts or scrambles thepurchase information you send over the Internet - to help guardthe security of your information as it is transmitted to awebsite. Secure websites will have URL address HTTPS (Hyper TextTransfer Protocol Secure) rather than HTTP.
Check the site's privacy policy, before you provide any personalfinancial information to a website. While these statementscontain lots of small print, it’s important you understand ifand when your information will be used or shared with others.Also check the site's statements about their security policies.
There are several payment options
available, however, the FairCredit Act (FCBA) limits your liability if your creditcard is used. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)”…your liability for lost or stolen credit cards is limited to$50. If the loss involves only your credit card number (not thecard itself), you have no liability for unauthorized use.” (FTC,2004)
Keep records of your online transactions and review for monthlycredit card and bank statements. Verify that the charges madewere accurate and report errors immediately. “The FCBA'ssettlement procedures apply to disputes about "billing errors"for open-end accounts, including unauthorized charges (youcannot be liable for more than $50 for unauthorized creditcharges); charges for goods or services you didn't accept orweren't delivered as agreed; charges that are incorrectlyidentified or show the wrong amount or date; math errors; afailure to properly reflect payments or credits; not mailing ordelivering credit statements to your current address, ifthe address was received by the creditor in writing at least 20days before the period ended; and charges for which yourequest an explanation or documentation, because of a possibleerror. ” (FTC, 2004)
Resources Author Unknown. (2004). A Consumer's Guide toE-Payments. Retrieved March 12, 2004 from www.FTC.gov
About the author:Lisa Hood is the author of "Shades of Betrayal" and “Shades ofRevenge”. She has been writing for over 10 years and ispresently working on her third suspense novel, “Shades ofJealousy.” She is also the Talent Liaison @ BOOKJOBBER.com.Other articles by Lisa Hood can be downloaded fromhttp://www.bookjobber.com/articles.asp ormailto:lisa_j@bookjobber.com
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