I really need help and advice on this one.I want to buy two things off the internet with my credit card,but am wary about giving my credit card number.I have done this over the phone and never had any trouble up to now,but never bought anything off the internet.One of the firms is in Amerca ,and does ship to England.The other is an English mail order book.What is you advice on this ?

Look for a padlock symbol in the bottom right corner of the screen when you go on the sites, that means the site is completely secure.

And only buy from reputable sites like Ebay, Amazon et al then you'll be perfectly safe.

Hope that helps :)

Assuming you've got no snidey keystroke counting malware on yer PC.

It's not secure sites you need to be worried about. It's the security on your PC that should worry you.

Thanks guys, will look for the padlock,also the American site says "order on line using our "Secure Server" Dont know what that means. Must be same as our padlock.there was actually a padlock on the bottom right of my screen, but not theirs.

When you see a padlock in the corner of your screen, it simply means that all the communication between your web browser and the server is encrypted. This is what the website means as a "secure server".

I dont want to put you off Pattricia, but you're right to be wary - its better to be careful than sorry. There are some scam sites out there or sites that do not take enough care over your details, but these are a very, very small minority and you'd be incredibly unlucky to find one.

Preferably use a credit card rather than a debit card as credit cards offer better protection if anything goes wrong. As Rich says, you're safer using reputable sites, but these sites do not always offer the range or the savings as the smaller sites. Don't spend a huge amount of money, then you can't lose a huge amount of money. Check that the website has contact details, including an address and a telephone number.

A lot of people consider buying over the internet to be much safer than reading out a telephone number to a human at the other end who could be doing anything. A well-built website will take much more care over your credit card number and will probably not even store the number once its been used.

Post the address of the website if you want another view on whether the site is legitimate or not.

EDIT: just to clarify, all the padlock does is it means that the communication between you and them is encrypted -- it doesn't mean that the company is legitimate or anything. Too many people just think that if they see a padlock, everything is fine.

Also Pattrica its worth checking the web address too. If it starts with 'https' then that means it is secure, if it is just 'http' then it is not a secure paymentsite.

The https goes hand in hand with the padlock as mentioned above.

Originally posted by spyro2000
Also Pattrica its worth checking the web address too. If it starts with 'https' then that means it is secure, if it is just 'http' then it is not a secure paymentsite.

The https goes hand in hand with the padlock as mentioned above. Spyro2000, Is that spot on that https means that its secure,but just http means it isnt ? Sheffield Forum has only got http, but doesnt sell anything.Cant believe that just one letter would make all the difference,will go back onto the site and look. :help:

Pattricia.... I like your computer questions, there also helping me a lot and i'm sure there helping others too, thanks.

:clap:

Originally posted by LL200
When you see a padlock in the corner of your screen, it simply means that all the communication between your web browser and the server is encrypted. This is what the website means as a "secure server".

I dont want to put you off Pattricia, but you're right to be wary - its better to be careful than sorry. There are some scam sites out there or sites that do not take enough care over your details, but these are a very, very small minority and you'd be incredibly unlucky to find one.

Preferably use a credit card rather than a debit card as credit cards offer better protection if anything goes wrong. As Rich says, you're safer using reputable sites, but these sites do not always offer the range or the savings as the smaller sites. Don't spend a huge amount of money, then you can't lose a huge amount of money. Check that the website has eaneancontact details, including an address and a telephone number.

A lot of people consider buying over the internet to be much safer than reading out a telephone number to a human at the other end who could be doing anything. A well-built website will take much more care over your credit card number and will probably not even store the number once its been used.

Post the address of the website if you want another view on whether the site is legitimate or not.

EDIT: just to clarify, all the padlock does is it means that the communication between you and them is encrypted -- it doesn't mean that the company is legitimate or anything. Too many people just think that if they see a padlock, everything is fine. :help: Thanks,but what does "encrypted "mean ?:help:

Thats right Pattricia, 1 letter is all it takes :)

https means secure, http means unsecure.

Encryption is basically scrambling up what you type in such a way that only your computer and the webserver can read it. Nobody else can understand it.

what does "encrypted "mean

It means the data is garbled up into unreadable text whilst its sent over the public internet and ungarbled at the other end.

So if the data is intercepted along the way people can only see a lot of "random" stuff not your credit card number etc.

I've been buying stuff off the net for years, mainly big sites like amazon, tescos, etc. Never been ripped off. IMHO you are just as likely to get ripped off handing over your credit card over to A N Other employee at a shop/resteraunt/etc as you are getting ripped off from most websites.

Just be careful to never, ever click on a link from an e-mail that appears to be from a bank/shop/websites etc that asks for your credit card or bank details. They often appear to be genuine (even the url in your browser can "look" right), but they are often scam sites farming credit card numbers.

The home page may not have 'https' but all the pages asking for personal details should have.

Most credit cards have online fraud protection. Check your small print to make sure you are not liable for any costs if it is ever misused.

The padlock means it's secure so it should be ok

Example
you put your card in a box you lock the box with your key. You then
send you card to the website if a theif tries to intercept your card on the way he can because the box is locked and you have the key
the website gets the box with your card in safely. The website now needs you key to open the box so they send you a open box wihch has there key inside it, you put your key for your box inside it and lock the box with the key they sent you. you then send the box to the website if a theif tires to intercept the box he can't beacuse it is locked and he doesn't have the key. The website recives the box and opens it with the other key for that box they then take your key out of the box and open your box to get your credit card.

Thanks everyone for your help.Am still studying ALL your replies carefully. Glad its helping you Poppins. We are amateurs really at the side of other web users, but you have to ask these questions dont you ?Much better than asking BT technical helpdesk.:thumbsup:

Originally posted by pattricia
Thanks everyone for your help.Am still studying ALL your replies carefully. Glad its helping you Poppins. We are amateurs really at the side of other web users, but you have to ask these questions dont you ?Much better than asking BT technical helpdesk.:thumbsup: Just went onto the site that I was thinking of buying goods from,and it said "http" and not "https", as one of the computer buffs told me. So wont buy goods from them.:thumbsup:

do you want to post the address pattricia?

Originally posted by LL200
]do you want to post the address pattricia? [/B] Dont quite understand your question LL200, can you explain in more detail, what you mean ?

what is the web address of the shop you are buying from?

Some websites will only use the https protocol for the actual checkout part of the site, i.e. once you've browsed, selected items and then clicked on 'proceed to the checkout' will it go to a https site.

Originally posted by LL200
what is the web address of the shop you are buying from? Yes, sorry, I have two web addresses,that I am thinking of buying goods from. One is : www.homefree.co.uk/ro and the other one is an American company called www.phsciences.com I havent bought any goods from either of them yet.:help:

Hi again Pattricia. I personally would have no problems ordering from Home Free. Once you have put something in your basket and you have clicked 'checkout', notice at this point you go to a https address and you have a padlock in the corner? This means you are safe to enter your credit card details. Also notice that the address has changed from www.homefree.co.uk to sdg-secure.co.uk? SDG stands for Shop Direct Group and this company owns Kays, Additions (used to be Argos Additions), Great Universal and lots of other companies, including Home Free. So you can be very confident in this company :)

I would also be relatively happy shopping with www.phsciences.com except that it is a US company. They also use a secure server when you go to the checkout and they have contact details online, including an address and telephone number. But what if your goods aren't delivered? Would you want to be phoning or writing to the US? This is simply my view though, if all you are concerned about is the security of the site or the company, I think you are fine.

Hope this helps!

Originally posted by LL200
Hi again Pattricia. I personally would have no problems ordering from Home Free. Once you have put something in your basket and you have clicked 'checkout', notice at this point you go to a https address and you have a padlock in the corner? This means you are safe to enter your credit card details. Also notice that the address has changed from www.homefree.co.uk to sdg-secure.co.uk? SDG stands for Shop Direct Group and this company owns Kays, Additions (used to be Argos Additions), Great Universal and lots of other companies, including Home Free. So you can be very confident in this company :)

I would also be relatively happy shopping with www.phsciences.com except that it is a US company. They also use a secure server when you go to the checkout and they have contact details online, including an address and telephone number. But what if your goods aren't delivered? Would you want to be phoning or writing to the US? This is simply my view though, if all you are concerned about is the security of the site or the company, I think you are fine.

Hope this helps! Thanks,that helps a lot !:thumbsup: