Usually I’d say “don’t be”. There’s nothing wrong with using your credit card online, it’s mostly safe and mostly convenient at the same time. Just follow a few simple precautions to minimize the chances of being a victim of credit card fraud, such as:
- Never give your PIN code to anybody (you don’t need your PIN code online, but I just wanted to remind you)
– - Never give your credit card details to anybody, not your friends or family, you don’t know if someone might intercept it or if you send it electronically that someone might be “listening”.
– - Before you enter your credit card details online, be sure that the URL in your browser begins with “https” and not just “http”, notice the “s” which stands for “secure”. That means the connection between your computer and the website is encrypted, if it’s not encrypted, you’re basically writing your credit card number on a postcard hoping that the mailman is not going to sneak a peak – don’t do that, always look for the “s”. Most browsers these days also displays a padlock or similar icon to indicate that you are on a secure website, just make sure that the icon is placed at the right place (somewhere right of the URL in the browser address bar, usually), because some fraud websites might try to trick you by using a website icon of a padlock (placed left of the URL, usually).
But of course you can never be 100% sure that your credit card details will remain safe, there are hackers out there, you know. I believe in most cases, the bank will hold you free of any charges if your credit card details are stolen online and you haven’t done anything wrong, but ask your bank to be safe, maybe there’s a small liability fee to be paid.