It’s a Prime Time for Older Adults to Shop Safely Online
For older adults, the convenience of online shopping is an enormous benefit, and at several times a year, savvy shoppers can locate sales on popular items. Today, Amazon is kicking-off its Prime Deals Days for members. While it’s a great time to get online and purchase some deals, it’s also important to be aware of the latest trends in online scams.
In its latest monthly Scam Trends Alert, Amazon reports that consumers continue to be plagued by impersonation scams. The scammers pose as trusted companies, sending out messages to alert you of a “problem” with an actual order, or refer to a fake order, urging you to act quickly to obtain your personal and financial information.
Shop for the deals and save money online but shop safely to ensure that your valuable dollars are spent wisely and securely online. Here are some tips for older adults (and everyone) to shop safely online:
- Always double-check to make sure that any email or text message is from your actual shopping source. If you do receive a message about an online shopping order, don’t click on the link as requested. Instead, go back to your online store shopping account and check to see if there are any issues with the delivery or billing (the issues that are usually stated by scammers). For example, if you’re shopping with Amazon, you can check your order history on www.Amazon.com or on the “Amazon Shopping” app. Only legitimate purchases will appear in your order history on the site.
- Resist any messaging that urges you to act quickly: It’s a red flag! Urgent messaging for you to take any swift action is used by scammers to get you to share your personal and financial information. Protect your personal and financial information and only provide it to a known and trusted source on a protected site.
- Only use a credit card, which has fraud protections, for your online purchases.
- Shop with an online trusted company that has security measures in place to ensure accounts are safe and to provide you with confidence that you’re shopping on a real site.
- Stay up-to-date and informed. Check out the great resources on online scams at AARP, the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) news on top scams and info for older adults, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) updates on scams.
- Finally, share these tips with your Gen Z kids or grandkids and tell them how to stay safe online. While older adults need to be informed to avoid online scams, young adults today are subjected to scams in even greater numbers.