The festive season is on, and so is the shopping spree that we all love and wait for! In the present day times, the very basics of shopping have changed by large. What used to be frequent trip after work to the crowded marketplaces, has now been replaced by filling online carts while comparing products on numerous e-commerce portals, finding the best deals, and make purchase using Best Credit Cards for Online Shopping.
Quite evidently with such a radical change in the way we shop, the way we pay has also seen a shift. An activity which was primarily conducted through cash exchange now takes place through a simple Credit Cards detail form, which is only befitting for a cashless economy – something that India is quickly on its ways towards.
More often than not, all e-commerce websites have the third party secured payment gateways, which ensure that your Credit Card information stays confidential, and out of reach of miscreants. However, this might not be the case any longer. In recent times, there has been a slight increase in the instances where Credit Card information is being stolen by hackers, through a relatively new method called Formjacking.
For the uninitiated, Formjacking is a concept wherein hackers make use of a malicious JavaScript code, to link to the checkout pages of shopping portals, thereby ensuring that they get access to your credit or debit card information when you make a purchase. The moment you hit the ‘Submit’ button after entering your card details, and other personal information, the entire data is transmitted to the hackers, who can then use it to make purchases off your card. Some hackers may even sell off the information on the dark web.
While the technique per se is not new, but the way it is being deployed in high numbers is a little worrisome. Moreover, the sophistication with which formjacking is being used makes it difficult to identify and check it right at the source.
If the numbers released by Symantec are to be believed, the number of formjacking attempts in one week of August of this year was a little over 40,000, while that in one week of September saw a steep rise with over 88,000 efforts. The staggering 117% increase in these attacks, might be a cause of worry for one and all. Besides, the cybersecurity giant claims to have blocked as many as 2,48,000 attempts since mid-week, which is more than just worrisome.
While the reason behind the sudden hike remains unknown, it has been concluded that the attempts are being made by a single sustained campaign. For the time being, it can be assumed that the frequency is not likely to come down shortly. Unfortunately, none of the shopping sites and e-commerce portals seem safe enough.
If you are wondering, what is it that you can do about this, then sadly the answer is -nothing much. You can merely hope and pray that the site you are shopping from is safe, or else, just for some time go back to the conventional method of payment – cash, or cash on delivery, in this situation.
That being said, you shouldn’t be disheartened or lose your faith in online shopping. This is nothing but a small hiccup in the extensive nexus of cashless transactions, and the cybersecurity giants will find a way to do away with it, sooner rather than later. After all, when it comes to getting the most out of your shopping sprees, nothing beats the incredible Credit Cards benefit, that we have all grown to love!
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