NextStop Blog

Cyber Monday has come and gone, but odds are, you’ll probably do a bit more online shopping throughout the month. But, you should be careful — while online shopping increases this time of year, it’s also the time of year when identity theft is on the rise.

Here are a few tips to ensure a safe holiday shopping experience:

1. Never give personal information over the telephone, such as your social security number, date of birth, mother’s maiden name, credit card numbers or bank PIN code, unless you initiated the phone call.
2. Sign all credit cards upon receipt.
3. Memorize your social security number and all of your passwords. Do not record them on any cards or on anything in your wallet or purse.
4. Never loan your credit card (or cell phone unless you know the person) to anyone else.
5. Report lost or stolen cards immediately.
6. Use caution when disclosing checking account numbers, credit card numbers or other personal financial data to any website or online service unless you receive a security authentication key from your provider (for example, the internet website address will start with ‘https://’ , which signifies a secure connection).

Identity theft is not the only thing to be mindful of this month. Here are a few tips to make your holiday shopping safer and more enjoyable.

From all of us here at Metro transit, have a safe and happy holiday season.