Shop safely online

By: Roseville Police Department

As we head into this bustling holiday season, we’d like to share some precautions you can take to protect yourself, your information and your packages.

While shopping online:

• Create strong passwords that are difficult to guess. Include numbers, capital letters and special characters like “!?&@”. Additionally, don’t use the same password for all your logins. If you have to write them down to remember, keep the list locked away somewhere at home.
• Only shop and pay at secure, reputable sites that have a URL starting with https://.
• Never use a debit card to shop online. Credit cards have more added protections.
• Validate emails and who sent them. If you click on the sender’s name, you’ll often see the email is actually not from Target, Walmart, or Amazon.
• Avoid opening emails that suggest you’ve won a prize. You haven’t. Never click to open a file from someone you don’t know. It could contain a virus that takes your personal information.
• Watch for pre-checked boxes. They may sign you up for a product or service or add your name to a mailing list.
• Carefully review your order before completing a transaction. If something was added that you don’t want, remove it.
• Make sure you check and keep any emailed order confirmation to ensure it’s for exactly what you intended to buy at the correct price.

Protect those packages:

• Once you’ve ordered items, make sure they’re not stolen from outside your door.
• Track your packages and ensure that you provide a hidden space for packages to be left.
• If you’re going to be out of town, don’t order items to sit on your front steps, have it delivered to a trusted neighbor or use a service like Amazon locker.
• If you’re away from home for an extended amount of time, ask USPS to hold your mail.

If you believe you’re a victim of package or mail theft, file a report on the Roseville Police Department website: www.roseville.ca.us/police

It’s important to frequently check your bank and credit card accounts. If something appears in your account that you don’t recognize, immediately call your bank or card issuer.