Staying safe At online Bidding

Internet is assisting many individuals and businesses to access a wider array of items available for

sale. This has increased competition. Insecurity is however a point of concern to many. Many

questions are raised concerning the identity and authenticity of products and participants. Many fear

losing their hard earned money and getting low quality products. It would be of importance to be

careful while bidding online as one is not able to completely verify the person's motive.

Know the seller or the person you are bidding with – There is nothing to lose by doing a

background check on the person you are bidding with. Try and verify their identity or the identity of

their business, their location, what the company deals with and if possible, past transactions and

individual feedback ranks others have issued about them.

Personal security on individual's details – Avoid giving intricate, over personal details of you.

Completely avoid issuing your credit number as this may give room for fraud. Only issue

information that will not cause loss to you until you have developed trust with the other party.

Know the product well and do an extensive research on it – Do you know how the product looks,

what are its key features, the advantages and disadvantages of the product, the current market price,

why it is on sale? All these are important questions to look into. Request for pictures of the item, so

that you may have a look of the item you are bidding for.

Read through the Terms and Conditions – Many of us avoid reading the terms and conditions of a

trade, our eyes are usually only fixed to the product. Find out the terms of payment, the mode of

payment and the duration of payment. It would also be good to inquire who will bear the cost of

shipping the product and the availability of shipping services. Consider the different modes of

payment acceptable and which is the safest to use. If not satisfied with a product or in case it is

malfunctioning, will it be possible for the buyer to return the product back to the buyer?

Keep some evidence of transactions – Keep a record of all activities carried out regards to that trade

to cover in case future reference is needed. Keep a record of the credit card transaction code, and

the dispatch agreement to indicate that the product has been shipped to the buyer.