2013 Online: The Digital Trends of the Digital Consumer

With the growing trends of managing more and more multiple devices, accounts and platforms, the internet has slowly but steadily found its way into all of our lives. The trend of increased BYOD (Bring your own device) activity has grown the complexity of the internet and how it should be managed by the end users.

The holiday season of Christmas, New Years' and the unofficial E-Commerce holidays like Mobile Thursday, Cyber Monday and Black Friday are now in the rear view mirror. But with many people taking their foot off the gas and spending some of their hard earned cash in the past few weeks, more security companies have found themselves exposed to the usual security threats that come with the season than ever before.

The top four items that were bought online in the previous year were, computers and gadgets, consumer electronics, kid's toys and apparel. The year also saw the emergence of new consumerisation technologies like BYOD (bring your own device) which appeared out of nowhere with its own familiar security issues.

Nonetheless, these divergences will neither change nor affect the users computing experience which is expanding day by day, with many solutions and strategies being put in place by tech suppliers and security analysts to bring the shaken IT department back on its feet.

The next few years will definitely determine where the next safe haven for cyber criminals will be, and how the law enforcement agencies are going to tackle this rising predicament. In the coming year, one thing is for sure, data breaches will continue and politically motivated attacks could rise and become more destructive.

Security First

In a recent study it was revealed that the average online shoppers are middle-aged females. It was noted that they were also among the highest online spenders, whose payments exceeded over five hundred dollars on a range of merchandise per year.

This is enough to make cyber criminal's set their sights on the online shopping market. For those who prefer the online shopping option from the more conventional shopping, here are a few tips that are tried and tested and will make your online shopping experience more safe.


  • Relying too much on search engines can also lead you to malicious online shopping sites. One way of staying away from such shopping sites is to bookmark the reliable ones whenever you come across them.

  • Even when using a search engine with an anti virus you can never be too sure about the online shopping sites you click on, some of the well known web search engines rate their websites, displaying the most trusted sites on top of their lists.

  • Always ignore doubtful offers that are sent to you by mail. Online shopping websites offering huge discounts and great bargains are often a spam.

  • When it comes to cash transferring online, you can never be too careful. Always double check the payment sites URL.

  • Keep in mind that phishers usually trick users into giving personal information through displaying spoofed pages.

  • Avoid clicking any links that are attached to malicious discounts being offered by shopping sites in your email. These file attachments more often than not contain viruses that lead to system infection.

  • Online ads offering discounts and special offers such as free meals can lead to spyware or other malicious software. It is always good to verify these offers by confirming from the providers.

  • And last but not the least, always make sure you are using security software that is reliable. One of the features in security software is to block out fake online sites that could compromise your system when accessed.


The fact is that sooner or later, everyone will want to shop online. One of the reasons is that it is much more convenient and ideal for people with less time in their hands. The task will be to make your online shopping experience safer by following a simple set of rules.

About the Author

Robert is an accomplished businessman who runs a string of successful businesses. In his free time, he enjoys working on pet projects and online marketing solutions like online photo books, etc.

Image credit: Jon Glittenberg on Flickr

Recommended

Join Pointcom

Receive pricing updates, shopping tips & more!