DealPass Offers Consumers Six Easy Tips on How to Shop Online Safely (News Release)   - 1,237 Views,

DealPass is an online portal for Adaptive Marketing LLC’s membership programs, which provide discounts on a wide range of consumer interests, including healthcare, personal security, shopping, home care, travel, entertainment and more. Through DealPass, members can access their money-saving benefits with many of the nation’s top retailers and service providers.

And as an added bonus, visitors to the site can shop worry-free, because DealPass has implemented rigorous security and customer protection policies. However, consumers should be aware that not all online retailers maintain such scrupulous standards.

Before you make another online purchase, be sure you’re following these basic steps to ensure that your shopping experience is not only convenient, but safe:

- Make sure your online transaction is secure. Reputable companies will encrypt your credit card information with security software, such as Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). During secure transactions, Netscape NavigatorTM and Microsoft Internet Explorer both display icons of a lock or padlock.

Tip: You can verify that your transaction is going through a secure server by checking the web page that’s requesting your credit card information - the web address should begin with “https� rather than “http.� The “s� stands for secure.

- Know who the e-tailer is. Before shopping from an unfamiliar company, do your homework by checking trusted business sources. Another simple way to verify that the company is truly an established business is to ask whether they have a retail location or a catalog you can receive. If they are solely an online company, exercise greater caution.

- Read the privacy, shipping and handling and refund policies. You should do this for every company you transact with, even if it’s a well-known retailer. These policies will tell you how they may use or share information about you, and will explain your recourse if you wish to make a return or lodge a complaint. If you don’t find these policies on their website, send them an email requesting it.

- Keep a record of your transaction. Print out your order confirmation, the terms and conditions and even the description of your purchase. You should also know that unless a company states otherwise, they must ship your order within 30 days. If there are delays, they are required to notify you.

- Approach online auctions with caution. You can find great bargains through online auctions. Before you bid, though, you need to make sure you know the rules and policies of the auction site as well as the seller’s terms for items that you wish to bid on, including warranties, the refund policy and shipping policy.