Is online shopping safe? Yes. And no. There are online shopping risks and no one should have any doubt about this. But safe online shipping is available. In fact online shopping is probably more or less inevitable. After all, traditional venues for shopping, such as shopping malls, are in rapid decline.

Online shopping safety involves an awareness of all issues relating to identity theft. You do not want your credit card number to end up in the wrong place, get picked up by a total stranger and then not show up until it has been used and abused with the purchase of a brand new Mercedes Benz. Safety online is a broad subject, but safe online shopping is something worthy of attention in and of itself.

Using strong security passwords is one way to stave off security breaches. This means using multiple characters and also using random words which, while memorable to the users, are completely unmemorable to anyone else who might be able to steal the information. It also involves using websites with secure servers.

There are numerous online marketplaces which have relatively good reputations. For example, Amazon is a fairly well respected company. Nonetheless, there are many companies which are not particularly respected. And online shoppers should take this into account whenever they shop online.

Make no mistake. Online shopping is a complex phenomenon, but it is one which can be made considerably safer by remembering a number of fairly simple rules and short cuts. There might not be a way to be one hundred percent secure, but it is possible to be so secure that one can go for years, if not for life, without ever suffering a serious security breach.

There is software which can be useful for online shopping, but the most important security measures are those which we ensure ourselves.