More Filipinos turn to online shopping platforms for discounts and promotions during the holiday season. However, cybersecurity risks are heightened at this time. With the surge in online deals, more employees may shop from their work computers, which increases the risk of clicking more freely and potentially exposing organizations to malicious links or phishing attacks.
A recent Sophos report warns that malicious emails were the second most common root cause of ransomware attacks in critical sectors, responsible for 25% of cases. In the Philippines, phishing is one of the top worries of organizations. During peak shopping days, the threat intensifies.
To keep your organization safe, encourage your team to follow these simple tips:
- Install an ad blocker. Advertisements track your every movement and collect enough information on your habits to make the FBI blush. They are a significant source of malicious links and deceptive content on the internet. Not only is your browsing safer, but it is also faster and uses less bandwidth. Two of our favorites are uBlock Origin and Ghostery.
- Use private browsing or incognito mode—To prevent websites from tracking your shopping habits and interests from site to site, enable private browsing (Firefox) or incognito mode (Chrome). It will block tracking cookies, and your online footprints will be washed away.
- Make your browser “privacy smart” – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) provides a browser extension called Privacy Badger, designed to maintain privacy and block invisible trackers.
- Avoid using one account on multiple services – When logging into an e-commerce site, using the “Sign in with Facebook” or “Sign in with Google” buttons is often tempting. While creating a new login takes a few more minutes, it will protect your privacy as your shopping patterns won’t be shared.
- Use guest login when available—If websites allow a guest login rather than creating a new account, this is an excellent option if you don’t expect technical support or do regular business. Fewer passwords and personal details mean fewer problems if you get hacked.
- Don’t save card details – Many e-commerce sites will ask if you want to store your credit card information in your profile for your “convenience.” They can’t lose what they don’t have, so opt not to store your credit card unless necessary.
- Use temporary card numbers—Many financial institutions now offer temporary or one-time-use credit card numbers. You can open the app on your phone or browser and get a single-use disposable credit card number, preventing card fraud and tracking when merchants share card processors. Sometimes, you can specify a card limit per temporary number to protect your account further.
- Use credit, not debit – Avoid overspending during the holidays, but leaving the debit card at home is best. Credit cards offer significantly more protection against online fraud, and you can simply not pay your bill while disputing the charge, rather than having criminals drain your bank account of your hard-earned cash.
- Beware of direct messages via social media/chat apps – With modern generative AI technology, creating an entirely fake online store and luring people to share their personal information and payment data with you is almost trivial. It’s safest to shop at trusted sites or those personally recommended by friends and family. Many unsolicited messages may lead to data collection or theft.
- Don’t click deals in emails that look too good to be true or are from businesses you don’t have accounts from. Phishing emails bait you into clicking links to bogus, malicious websites.
This season, small steps will make a big difference in protecting against cyber threats and losing our hard-earned money.
