WHO wants to queue for hours Christmas shopping in frantic stores to the sound of Jona Lewie’s Stop the Cavalry when they can sit in the silent comfort of their own home and work through their festive list at the click of a mouse? The UK is predicted to be Europe’s biggest market for online shopping this festive season with 27 million consumers anticipated to generate £14 billion in sales. But how safe is it? PAULINE HOLT reports . . . MORE than 70 per cent of UK web users are expected to shop online this Christmas . . . spending an average of £490 each. But just how safe is it to commit credit or banker’s card details to online stores? University lecturer Julie Bradford is one internet shopper who is thinking twice about whether to buy online this season after her debit card details were stolen, possibly during an online transaction. Julie, of Morpeth, Northumberland, explained: “The first I knew was when my bank sent me a series of letters saying I had exceeded my authorised overdraft. “I couldn’t understand why and thought my pay had not gone in that month, but the bank told me it had. When they talked me through the debits I discovered that, five days earlier, someone had taken out £3200 in a single day — £1500 in the morning and £1700 in the afternoon — and the bank hadn’t thought this was anything odd. “The money had gone to an online gambling site, yet I have never spent a penny on gambling in my life. “When they said what had happened they simply rolled their eyes and said ‘We’ve had loads of this’. They didn’t seem surprised. I had done a bit of internet shopping recently and it occurred just after that, so that got me worried. It’s put me right off.” Julie did get her cash back, though not immediately. Jonathan Wheatley, a cyber crime expert based in Stokesley, North Yorkshire, believes Julie’s online transaction is the most likely reason for the theft. He said: “There’s a technology called ‘Man In the Middle’ which enables another internet user to see all the information from your computer to another computer. And he revealed that he too has been the victim of computer fraud: “Only last month I had to cancel my bank’s credit card because someone used it to gamble online to the tune of £240. “Security is a cat and mouse game. All banks would say the amount of money they spend on anti-fraud technology are double digits higher than they spent last year. But spammers are very clever.” Jonathan, a partner with HD Forensics and a registered expert witness for court trials, added: “They’re looking to hijack other people’s PCs so they can send spam from theirs. “They’ll send out ads for products like Viagara etc or ‘phishing’ emails seeking verification of bank details. Nobody is above being hacked and there is no system that can advertise itself as foolproof.” However, there are precautions we can all take. Jonathan advises restricting shopping to reputable websites that place a premium on security measures and always check the address in the top bar remains the same. “In some cases you can be redirected to a site that looks and feels like the site you are on but it’s a hoax site to get your credit card details. “Look for sites that have secure certificates when you go to the payment area. You are looking for ‘http’ to turn into ‘https’ in the top bar, which means you are entering a secure site. It’s not an absolute guarantee but it’s safer.” And he believes it’s better not to lodge your card details with websites, even if you shop on them regularly, but rather to input your details each time you use them. He said: “I don’t do it because what is safe today is not necessarily safe tomorrow. I also use a credit card with a set limit. For the average buyer we recommend no more than £500 to £1000 for internet purchases.” And Jonathan said hackers don’t always act alone: “One of the new things with the internet is there are now whole communities buying and selling credit card information.” A very easy way for cyber criminals to obtain information is through discarded hard drives. Jonathan said: “When you take your computer to the tip we suggest you remove the hard drive and damage it with something like a hammer. You need that drive absolutely unusable.” Despite his insider knowledge, Jonathan still intends to shop online this Christmas, although he’ll be taking his own advice. “Internet shopping is a wonderful thing,” he said. “It fits in with our lifestyles but we need to be aware of its risks.” | 
