Better Business Bureau offers tips for shoppers during holiday season

The Better Business Bureau offered tips for holiday shopping Wednesday as people geared up for Black Friday deals.

Earlier this year, thieves hacked into major retailers and stole customers’ identities.

“I think there is a definite sense of fear or maybe paranoia that in some cases is OK. But people need to understand, commerce is going to go on,” said Matt Barrett with the Better Business Bureau.

Barrett said consumers are especially vulnerable to scams this time of year.

“The biggest thing with this time of year is the number of transactions that are going on increases dramatically and as a result, it’s very easy to overlook something on your credit card statement or bank statement that just gets washed on with everything else and you don’t realize you have been taken advantage of,” said Barrett.

He said there are easy steps consumers can take to protect their cash during this holiday season.

He encourages shoppers to check their bank statements daily or at least several times a week. He said thieves will initially charge a few dollars on a stolen credit card to see if it works before making larger transactions.

When it comes to shopping online, he recommends always purchasing items through sites that start with “https.” He said the “s” stands for secure.

He retailers have learned a lot during from wide-spreading hacking this year. He said its lead to a more safe and secure shopping environment for consumers. Still, he expects more changes to come.

“I think we are going to see more and more security steps come into place in the whole credit card processing,” said Barrett.