Tis the Season for Cyber Fraud, Here's How Consumers Can Protect Their Information
As retailers prepare their online platforms for the busy holiday shopping season, there are also steps consumers can take to protect themselves from cyber fraud as they go online to shop. SOASTA CEO Tom Lounibos gives three tips for consumers to protect themselves from cyber fraud this holiday season.
First, Lounibos suggested focusing on the websites of brands you are familiar with.
“Probably the biggest one is the brands you choose. I think if you’re choosing websites that you’re not familiar with, the brands have literally, since a couple years ago with the Target problems that they had, the brands have spent almost $8 billion in securing the data, the customers’ data. So go to brands that you know. That’s probably number one,” Lounibos told the FOX Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo.
Second, Lounibos tells consumers to be leery of pop up ads.
“You have to be careful of things you click on because there are a lot of ads within websites. And so, sometimes it’s not the website you go to, but it’s the ads that are actually on their websites that might actually cause some problems, so you have to be a little bit diligent there.”
Lastly, Lounibos cautions consumers to be mindful of a website that is noticeably slow to load.
“You’re cautious about slow websites as well. Performance sometimes relates to brands that are illegitimate, and so people have to be vigilant as they consume online these days.”
According to Lounibos, a slow performing website doesn’t always mean it’s a fake brand, but it does raise a red flag that your data may be potentially vulnerable.
“If you’re a slower website, you know, sometimes it’s a real brand,” Lounibos continued, “But, for the most part, performance is directly associated with brands that are not diligent with their service or their support side of the fence or the consumer data.”