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!

May 1st, 2009 by admin

If recreating the old experience of subscribing to magazines by filling out a subscription card is essential to the success as an Internet retailer, then MagMall.com takes top awards. The retailer has created a web site with all the ease of use of the original pop out cards through fast loading graphics, and an intuitively designed layout that is both easy to follow and navigate.

“Visitors to the magazine subscription site get the feeling that subscribing online is just as easy as subscribing through the mail, but with added benefits,” says Fariman Dejouli, head of graphics design for Mountain Network Systems LLC. “It is a well laid out site for finding magazines and filling out subscription forms.”

A recent addition to their arsenal of web-based tools is the ability for shoppers to search for magazines by price range, first letter, category or even description. Shoppers can use their advanced searching feature to combine different search parameters. Of course, the fastest way to find magazines is to just type in a title in their search box or to click a fast category link in their fundamentally simple left navigation system.

The web site enhancements were developed in conjunction with Mountain-net.com, which offers one of the original ecommerce shopping cart platforms called Webcart. The inclusion of the new web site searching tools is part of a multi-pronged strategy by MagMall to cater to consumers who want to subscribe to all their magazines from one place.

“MagMall does a much better job than its competitors when it comes to evolving its web site,”, Dejouli says. “From a purely ecommerce transaction standpoint their site works extremely well.”

Jason Ciment
jason@magmall.com
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http://www.magmall.com
Magazine subscriptions - Save up to 85% off retail prices
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http://www.mountain-net.com
Webcart - The Total Ecommerce Shopping Cart Software Solution