{"id":32703,"date":"2018-08-01T11:29:16","date_gmt":"2018-08-01T03:29:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/?p=32703"},"modified":"2018-08-08T11:10:27","modified_gmt":"2018-08-08T03:10:27","slug":"tips-on-how-to-stay-safe-when-making-digital-payments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/2018\/08\/01\/tips-on-how-to-stay-safe-when-making-digital-payments\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips on how to stay safe when making digital payments"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Security hazards are major obstacles to the adoption of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/2018\/07\/16\/the-state-of-digital-payments-in-the-philippines\/\">digital payments<\/a>, especially now that it is increasingly accepted in the Philippines. While digital payment technology is deemed beneficial to consumers, it also presents security issues that require ways and means to address ongoing as well as emerging challenges. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>In the Philippines, the biggest hurdles in digital payment migration are the lack of a reliable and secure payment infrastructure combined with the still pervasive consumer mindset that cash remains fast and uncomplicated, according to Siang Tiong Yeo, Kaspersky Lab Southeast Asia\u2019s general manager, in an email interview with <a href=\"http:\/\/UpgradeMag.com\">UpgradeMag.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are not aware how digital payment service providers in the Philippines respond to security risks, but all businesses are potential targets especially those in the financial sector,\u201d said Yeo, adding that \u201cno business is safe from cybercriminals and, as such, organizations must be prepared to take responsibility for their cybersecurity.\u201d<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Mobile payments are convenient and faster. Instead of carrying cash or credit\/debit cards, you just use or tap your mobile phone on a merchant\u2019s terminal to pay for goods and services. This payment technology offers opportunities to improve customer services, however, it is hounded with security risks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCybercriminals are always hunting for money. Hacking online transactions is relatively easy if users and payment systems lack security. The government and the public should all work together to secure online money as early as today with digital payment at its infancy,\u201d Yeo noted.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>To address security challenges in digital payment systems, Yeo shares the following tips you can use to stay safe: <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Don\u2019t assume links are genuine.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>When you need to visit an online bank, a retailer or a payment Web site, you should manually type in the URL \u2013 instead of clicking on a link. Do not visit Web sites by clicking on:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Links in emails<\/li>\n<li>Messages on social network sites<\/li>\n<li>Messages in chat rooms<\/li>\n<li>Banner ads that are on suspicious Web sites<\/li>\n<li>Links sent to you by people you do not know<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Beware of fake communications<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Most financial organizations will never send emails asking customers to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Send personal data in an email<\/li>\n<li>Visit their site for authorization<\/li>\n<li>Enter personal data in pop-up windows<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Check the URL<\/b><\/p>\n<p>When you\u2019re visiting a Web page that needs you to enter confidential data, carefully check the address of the page that\u2019s shown on the browser corresponds with the page that you were intending to access. If the URL is made up of a random selection of letters and numbers \u2013 or it looks suspicious \u2013 do not input any information.<\/p>\n<p><b>Use encryption<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Make sure that you use an encrypted connection, whenever you need to input any confidential data. If a connection is secure, the URL will start with the letters \u2018https\u2019 \u2013 in addition, the address bar or the browser\u2019s status bar will display a small icon of a lock.<\/p>\n<p>When you click on the lock icon, look closely at the information about the SSL authentication certificate that has been issued to the site (you\u2019ll be able to note when the certificate was issued, who issued it and for what period the certificate was issued).<\/p>\n<p><b>Use your own computer \u2013 and your own Internet connection<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Try to avoid using public computers \u2013 in Internet cafes, airports, clubs, hotels, libraries or other locations \u2013 when you need to access online banking services or online retailers. These public computers may have a variety of spyware programs running on them. If so, these malicious programs could record everything you type on the keyboard \u2013 including your passwords \u2013 and also intercept Internet traffic.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>Even if you use your own computer for online transactions, you need to avoid connecting to the Internet via a public Wi-Fi network. On a public Wi-Fi network, there is a risk that the traffic might be intercepted by the network\u2019s administrator or by cybercriminals \u2013 and attacks might be launched with network worms. In fact, Kaspersky Lab offers its Secure Connection App for iOS and Android devices for download in the App Store and Play Store.<\/p>\n<p><b>Don\u2019t use your main credit card or debit card<\/b><\/p>\n<p>You might benefit from having a special card that you only use for online purchases. It may be possible to restrict the credit limit for your \u2018online credit card\u2019 or to hold a limited amount of money on your \u2018online debit card\u2019.<\/p>\n<p><b>Learn from other people\u2019s experiences<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Before making a purchase online, try to read customer reviews about that specific retailer.<\/p>\n<p><b>Be wary of potentially untrustworthy sites<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It can be a good idea to avoid buying from retailers that have Web sites that are registered with free hosting services.<\/p>\n<p><b>Get additional information about the Web site<\/b><\/p>\n<p>If you have any doubts or suspicious about a retailer\u2019s Web site, use a \u2018Whols\u2019 IP service in order to find out more information about the domain \u2013 including how long it has been in use and who owns it. Note the period of time for which the domain has been paid.<\/p>\n<p><b>Eliminate vulnerabilities \u2013 in your operating system and applications<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Always ensure that the operating system \u2013 and all applications \u2013 on your computer and other devices have the latest updates installed. This will help to eliminate operating system and application vulnerabilities that can be exploited by malicious software programs and attacks. Windows OS products are often targets of vulnerabilities so be sure you\u2019re secure whether you are running the newest OS, XP, or Windows 7. Security is essential.<\/p>\n<p><b>Maintain your firewall<\/b><\/p>\n<p>For additional security, instead of just running a standard firewall, you may choose to run application and software-based firewalls.<\/p>\n<p><b>Protect against malware and Internet security risks<\/b><\/p>\n<p>A rigorous anti-malware solution like Kaspersky Internet Security can protect you against computer viruses worms, Trojan viruses and more. Some anti-malware products also include special technologies that provide additional layers of security when you\u2019re using online shopping and banking Web sites.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Security hazards are major obstacles to the adoption of digital payments, especially now that it is increasingly accepted in the Philippines. While digital payment technology is deemed beneficial to consumers, it also presents security issues that require ways and means to address ongoing as well as emerging challenges. \u00a0 In the Philippines, the biggest hurdles [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":22472,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,22],"tags":[5762,6151,286,117],"class_list":["post-32703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-headlines","category-spotlight","tag-digital-payments","tag-high-tech","tag-it-security","tag-kaspersky-lab"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32703"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32703\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.upgrademag.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}