In-Home Care Tips for Safe Online Shopping

Online Shopping Safety: In-Home Care Riverhead NY

Online shopping is very convenient and many seniors love being able to shop for all kinds of things without having to worry about how to get to the store to get what they want. These days, even groceries and pet supplies can shopped online, showing up at the house the same day. But online shopping can also leave seniors exposed to scams and fraud. Those who aren’t tech savvy may not know how to keep their personal and financial information safe when they are shopping online.

If your senior parent is aging in place, in-home care is a great thing for them to have. When seniors have in-home care they have someone with them to help with things like housework and cooking but also to help seniors manage technology and stay safe online.

Use a Prepaid Card

One smart way for seniors to protect their money when they’re shopping online is to use a prepaid debit or credit card to shop with. The biggest advantage of using a prepaid card is that there is a finite amount of money on that card. Even if the card numbers get stolen the thieves can only spend what’s available on the card. They can’t use that card to get into a senior’s retirement accounts, investment accounts, savings accounts, or checking accounts. So even in the worst case scenario seniors will only lose whatever money is on that card. Most banks offer pre-paid card for no additional fee.

Check the Website Address

One way that scammers get money from people, especially seniors, is by setting up website that mimic real ecommerce websites. Only when seniors shop on the scam website that money goes to the scammer and the senior will get the products they bought. Scam websites can be carbon copies of reputable sites. Sometimes the only way to tell the difference is to check the actual URL of the site. Often it’s off by one letter from the original. In-home care providers can help seniors verify a site is real before shopping on it.

Never Click On Links in Emails

Another common way that seniors get scammed when shopping online is that they will click on a link in an email and end up being phished for their financial and personal data. Seniors should never click on a link in an email, even if seems to be from a reputable store. Instead seniors should type in the URL of the directly and bypass the link.

Take a Screenshot of All Receipts

When seniors shop online and they finish a transaction the receipt should pop up on the screen and a copy should arrive in the senior’s email. Seniors who are shopping online should take a photo of the receipt with their phones or take a screen shot of it. That way if they don’t end up getting the emailed copy of the receipt they still have something that has the order number and confirmation on it.

If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Care in Riverhead, NY, call the caring staff at Artful Home Care today at 631-685-5001.