Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials offered a number of tips for the deluge of online shoppers looking to cash in on Cyber Monday deals.

Last year was the nation’s largest e-commerce day to date, according to CNN report.

“Data collected by Adobe found U.S. online orders totaled $3.07 billion,” the article noted. It also

With that in mind, deputies offered a few tips about securing your cyber purchases and deliveries.

From the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station:

1. Never use your debit card when shopping online. If your debit card number falls into the wrong hands, your cash could be wiped out in seconds. Instead, use a credit card to avoid this potential disaster.
2. Avoid purchasing goods on fraudulent websites. Hundreds of fake websites offering fraudulent products can be found online while searching for legitimate sites. If a deal looks too good to be true, do your research before making your purchase. When in doubt, exit out.
3. Make sure you are buying from a secure site. Look for the address bar to turn green, the web address to begin with “https” or the locked padlock symbol.
4. Use a different password at every site. Yes, it’s extra work but will keep hackers from gaining access to all of your accounts, including your bank account, should your password be compromised.

Officials would like to remind you to take extra care this time of year when having packages delivered to your residence. Package thefts from doorstops and front porches usually increase around the holidays.

There are steps you can take to be proactive in keeping your packages safe. Encourage family and neighbors to pick up packages as soon as possible as after they are delivered. Track your packages. Try to be present at the time of delivery.

Many mail carriers allow you to track your shipment online:

FedEx: https://www.fedex.com/apps/fedextrack/

UPS: https://m.ups.com/mobile/track?loc=en_us

USPS: https://m.usps.com/m/TrackConfirmAction

#LASD #SCV #Protectyourpurchases

CNN contributed to this report