Holiday Safety Tips

SAFETY AT THE MALL

You’re distracted, the stores are crowded, but it’s important to force yourself to be aware of your surroundings.

If possible, keep your personal belongings, (e.g. your wallet or money) in an inside pocket so that pickpockets won’t have easy access. You may want to leave that bulky purse at home, too.

Don’t keep a wad of cash in one spot. Distribute your money among several pockets so if you get robbed, you’ll still have some cash on hand.

Where possible, use your debit or credit card in place of cash. If these cards become misplaced or stolen, you can easily report it to your credit card company. It’s a lot easier to replace a card than your entire holiday savings.

Stay alert around ATM machines. Thieves know people take out larger-than-normal amounts of money during the holiday season and are ready to pounce.

Head out to stores early. This way, you’ll get your shopping done during daylight hours.

Avoid dark, empty parking lots. If you feel unsafe, have a store security guard walk you to your car, no matter how foolish you think you may look. Your safety is more important.

Put gifts in the trunk or underneath seats. Thieves can easily break a window to snatch your holiday treasure trove if it’s teasing them from the back seat.

ONLINE SAFETY

Only purchase gifts from reputable sites. Large department store Web sites and recognizable businesses are usually safe. You don’t want to be left without gifts because a bogus business stole your cash.

Look for a secure connection when entering payment information. On most computers a padlock icon or the word “secure” will appear at the bottom of your screen when you reach a page that is secure. This makes it harder for hackers to steal your contact information and credit card number when you’re ordering.

Consider using a separate credit card for all online purchases. This makes it easy to track your purchases and see if anyone has used your number illegally.

~ Originally published in Lifestyles Magazine on 11/01/04