August 14th, 2009 by admin

Shopping online can often be perceived as more risky than real world transactions. In order to make it as safe as possible, The Product Shack have come up with some important things to look out for when buying anything online.

The first thing to do is not worry! As long as you take your time and take care, you are safer than using your credit/debit card than in the real world. After all, who knows what happens to your card when the waiter takes it away to pay for your meal? If you pay for things over the phone, what does the operator do with your details?

The above is not to make you paranoid, or avoid shopping altogether; it’s just to point out the fact that online shopping can be as safe, if not safer than shopping offline.

Ok, so you’ve arrived at the online shop and you like the look of some of the products on show. What now? Well firstly don’t rush for your wallet and get the cards out. You need to check a few things first.

Does the shop look professional? Is the design of the site professional looking? If a company has spent a lot on design, it shows they are serious. Of course, there will be some small niche sites that sell unusual items that cannot afford professional web design, so still consider using them!

If you use Internet Explorer to browse the web, does a little padlock appear in the bottom right hand corner? That is one way of determining if the site is secure. This may not show up in all versions of Internet Explorer.

Seal of approval: Does the site have various seals of approval from other known secure sites? Seals such as HackerSafe are good to see. If so, the sites are bound to be secure as they carry these approvals. Any complaints can also be directed to those companies if need be.

Can you contact the site easily? Being able to email a company is the absolute minimum requirement. They need to be contactable for any questions you may have. A good response time is always a bonus. If they have a contact phone number that shows they must be a fairly big operation. Live chat is an even bigger indication that they are genuine, allowing you to chat online with one of their customer service specialists.

One last thing that can be checked, is do they have any customer reviews? Testimonials and customer reviews are a great way of checking other customers’ previous experiences with dealing with that company.

Now that you have an insight into the world of online shopping, give it a try yourself!

The Product Shack offers an expansive shopping directory.
For more information, please visit: http://www.theproductshack.co.uk

July 24th, 2009 by admin

The online insurance shoppers have some distinct advantages. They don’t need an appointment. They don’t need to be on the telephone. They just need to be prepared. If you are planning to shop online then you need to have some basic information at your disposal. The first time buyer needs to have some basic information. The best resource for that information would be an appraisal. The home appraisal has most of the information necessary to give you an adequate quote. The market value of the home along with the square footage are the two most important criteria used to determine the amount of insurance needed. The market value and age will dictate the type of policy to purchase. The renewal declarations page is a valuable source of information for the comparison shopper.

Actual Cash Value - Actual cash value is one way the insurance companies settle losses. This method will calculate the actual replacement cost at the time of loss and subtract any depreciation because of age or use. You will generally see actual cash value policies written on older homes. Many of your older homes have a market value much less than the cost to rebuild. The older Victorian homes built in the early 1900’s are a good example.

Replacement Cost - This method is used for newer homes or homes under construction. Replacement cost claim settlements use materials of like kind and quality when repairing or rebuilding the structure and there is no allowance for depreciation.

The correct square footage is very important because the online insurance calculators determine the actual cost to rebuild your home based on your square footage calculation. Air conditioning and fireplaces are upgrades that increase the replacement cost value of your home. Finished basements and outdoor decking also add to the calculation.

Discounts are given for smoke detectors, dead bolt locks and fire extinguisher. There are even larger discounts for burglar and fire alarms that transmit directly to the police station and fire department. Be prepared with this information and your online shopping will be so much easier. View our recommended insurers for more detailed information.

View our Recommended Insurance Company This site is simple and easy to fill out a quote and has a lot of great info about Home Insurance and Affordable Health Insurance

July 3rd, 2009 by admin

With the oil prices at $2 a liter, driving to a mall is going to be even more expensive than ever. Driving anywhere is going to be very costly.

Then there are the traffic jams which translate to more unproductive time in the car, wasting even more precious petrol.

Add to that the lack of parking space especially during peak periods where you have to circle the car park over and over again looking for a space to park. Oh, and the parking charges that would be involved.

Just getting there alone is going to cost you quite a bit.

As for the other factors like the crowds, the long queue to pay up, fighting over that last must have item with someone else who got to it at the same time. Hours going physically from place to place looking for the shop that still carries that toy your child must have for his birthday or for Christmas.

Why go through all that when you can shop without even leaving the comfort of your home?

Besides saving the petrol cost, you can compare the offerings of various stores without having to physically travel from store to store. For example, you can get the best deals on each item you intend to buy, check the brands, see the discounts just a mouse click away.

Some online stores have web only promotions. Others offer free shipping. Yet others offer online coupons you enter into a box when you check out for additional savings. All these add up to substantial savings if you buy online.

Another thing I love about online shopping, especially where gifts are concerned is that you can get the gifts delivered directly to the doorstep of the recipient. I’m really absent minded and tend to forget to bring gifts with me for birthdays and other occasions. What I do these days is to order the gift in advance and send it ahead of time to the birthday girl’s home. She gets a pleasant surprise when the postman delivers her the gift ahead of time. I even send Christmas gifts this way. You can send yours with a note “Do not open until 25th December.” if you want yours to be opened only on Christmas day.

I buy my skincare online too. Some things I just can’t get at the neighbourhood store. Usually, the malls I frequent charge much higher prices for the same skincare product than my favourite online stores. You can find them in this Health and Beauty Product Discounts I don’t blame them. Malls have higher operating costs.. rental costs for example, which they pass down to us in higher prices. Online store operate on much lower overheads and their savings are usually passed down to us, the customers.

All this adds up. By shopping online, saving on petrol, saving on time (time that could be used more productively), saving through discounts.. you end up with substantial savings.

The writer is the webmaster of Cheapest Sale where you can find the best deals in anything to do with health, beauty, watches, jewelry, electronics, fashion, sports, television, movies, animals, plants, christmas, thanksgiving, halloween, cartoons, hobbies, music or even superheros.

June 12th, 2009 by admin

Everyone is talking about online shopping. It’s easy and a lot less hassle than a trip to the mall. It puts unbelievable choice right at your fingertips. Despite the advantages, there are certain things you do and don’t do when it comes to your money and your safety. Street smarts are the rule online and off when it comes to safe shopping. Online that goes double.

Online shoppers, just like those in the physical world, know to be aware of the neighborhood where they are shopping. They know the reputations of the places where they do business. They watch their wallets, and they know to be aware of who might be scrutinizing them just a little too closely.

Do a little research. Anyone can build a website. If you encounter an unfamiliar company where you want to shop, find out who they are. Look for an address. Be wary of any company that does not list one. An address is no guarantee, but you can use it to check references with the Better Business Bureau, BBB. Their online site at http://bbb.org/ has nationwide listings.

Sometimes you may want more information than the BBB provides. In this case, after the BBB check, use your favorite search engine and try an “about search.” The difference in an “about search,” and just looking for the site, is that you already know where the site is; now you want to find out what people are saying about it. Generally, just putting “about” in front of the company name will get you started.

For a very small purchase, you might want to dispense with all this investigating. But do use a low limit credit card. That way if anything does go awry, it isn’t that far awry. Yes, we all know about the $50 liability limit, but the low limit card can be a hassle saver online.

You may choose not to use a debit card online at all. Many debit cards do not offer the same protections against fraud as credit card companies. You could be putting your whole bank account at risk.

While you are at it, be sure to check out the return policy and guarantee. Online and off, most good companies do accept returns, either by providing a cash refund or product exchange. Note, however, shipping costs are typically not refunded for online purchases.

Online Security:

After you’ve found exactly what you have been looking for, checked out the seller, and their return policy; the next thing you need to do is make sure the site is secure. Secure means your personal information is encrypted in transit to the seller’s server. This prevents unauthorized (hacker) access and possible misuse of your credit information.

Examine the URL in the address bar. If the site is encrypted you will see an “s” directly after the http - like https://. The whole site will not be encrypted, but the order page for the transaction should be.

Other things to look for - depending on your browser, you may see either an open or a closed padlock, or a whole or broken key. If the key is broken or the lock open, you should assume that the site is not encrypted.

Sometimes security issues get tricky. Suppose you personally know the owner, it is a solid local business, but there is no encryption system in place and they expect you to transmit your credit information online. With small businesses, this is most often a case of not knowing better, that does not, however, mean that you do not. In cases like this, look for a phone number and call in your order. If there is no phone number and no mailing address, you should seriously consider whether you want to risk an unsecured transaction.

Common sense is the rule online and off. Guard your personal information, including Social Security Number, bank account information and passwords. No reputable merchant has a need for your Social Security Number and it is not standard policy to ask for it when you buy your groceries for instance. Requiring this for a routine purchase should send up a red flag. You should immediately take your business elsewhere. Some will do whatever they can think of, in all kinds of official looking ways, to get you to provide private personal information. If you call, they may personally assure you that they do indeed need your bank account and password to sell you that CD. No way, just because it looks good, and they sound sincere, doesn’t mean that it is or they are, and you may not know there was ever a problem until you see your credit report.

The last big rule is to keep copies of everything. Print out the pages with the description and prices of items you order. Print out your credit card receipt. Most companies will email you a copy as well. Keep that too, and make sure it matches your online information.

And remember, online and off, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Don’t let the heat of the offer lull you into abandoning your good common sense. Of course, you could miss the deal of a lifetime, and that is exactly what the unscrupulous want you to think. Likely as not, online and off - if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Shopping the net is destined to change the way we do business, but it is still a new frontier, with many of the uncertainties that go with it. The only way to really be secure online is to develop your street smarts and sometimes, that may not be enough. It will certainly level the field though, and by keeping your cyber smarts well honed, you should be able to safely shop the net.

Regina Garson has lived and worked on the Internet for many years. She teaches computer classes at Virginia College in Huntsville, Alabama. Online and off, she has helped many learn their way around the net. For more about online shopping, you can visit her website: LaFindz of the Net at http://lafindz.tripod.com

May 22nd, 2009 by admin

You can shop online in a safe way, and save money too.

For those hard to find items or very busy shoppers, online shopping is ideal. You can simply find the item you are looking for without going through store after store. A lot of sites, like a popular auction one, are quite addicting. You can find really good deals without having to leave your house.

I am sometimes surprised at how many people I meet that are scared of purchasing things via the internet. I understand, after all you are simply sending your information out into the unknown.

But if you are shopping wisely, you will find that the Internet is often safer than using your credit card to buy gasoline. After all, do you know the clerk that now has a copy of your card number and expiration date?

Here are a few tips for shopping safely online:

1. You need to download the most recent version of your Internet browser. This will give you the latest encryption capabilities to protect your information that is transmitted over the web.

2. The padlock icon on the status bar at the bottom of your browser window will tell you that a site is secure.

3. Only shop from secure sites.

4. An “s” is added to http (https) that shows that the site is on a secure server.

5. Before you submit any information to a site, make sure you read the privacy policy. Don’t just click “I agree”. Read it.

6. Don’t provide your information unless you know who it is, why you need to provide it and how it will be used. Don’t give it to anyone who contacts you. When in doubt, pick up the phone and call the company. If you feel safer shopping online but paying by phone, go ahead. It takes a bit longer, but you will feel better.

7. Don’t use your debit card for Internet purchases. For those of you without a credit card (you shouldn’t be using one anyway), you can use Paypal to pay for things at many sites. Or call and pay by telephone.

8. Make sure that you review your credit card and bank statements each month for any fraudulent charges. If you notice anything funny, contact the bank or credit company immediately.

9. Clean your computer with spyware detection and virus protection regularly. A firewall will protect your computer from spyware.

The majority of identity theft and fraud are not found on the internet. After all, all a thief has to do to get your account numbers is to pick up your mail or go through your trash. Many will simply break into your home and take your financial files. The internet is a good place to shop for good bargains. If you are wise and pay attention to who you purchase from, you should have no problems. Good luck.

Martin Lukac represents http://www.RateEmpire.com and http://www.1AmericanFinancial.com, a finance web-company specializing in real estate and mortgage rates. We specialize in daily updates, mortgage news, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more. Find low home loan mortgage interest rates from hundreds of mortgage companies!