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Internet security for buying designs
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Many times I've visited sites (Stitch Delight is one that comes to mind) and I see designs that are beautiful and want to buy, BUT when I see
that sites are in foreign countries I always change my mind for fear of hacking and disclosing credit card information. Is my concern totally unjustified just because these digitizers are in foreign countries? Does the USA actually have any better internet security? Is there a "best in class" security program out there in the cyberworld for protection from hacking???? Thanks for any and all responses...sure would like to buy more designs:) |
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Security in the US is certainly no better than it is in other countries, and it may even be worse. How many times has a clerk in a store actually looked to see if the signature on the back of your credit card matches the slip you just signed? While there are a lot more hackers in Eastern European countries, they are mostly targeting the US. Most recently there has been over $1 million stolen through "Jackpotting" ATM machines. They modify the machine so that it just dispenses cash until it is empty.
Remember if you are using a credit card your liability for fraudulent charges is at most $50, and many cards don't even hold you responsible for ANY fraudulent charges. The real risk is a lot closer to home. Ordering with a laptop on public WiFi (Starbucks)? Every keystroke you make can be captured by someone. Buying gas with a card reader at the pump? It may have a "skimmer" attached that captures your card and sends it to the bad guys. Choosing not to pay for an antivirus subscription on your new computer that came with free limited time protection? Don't order anything ever, and don't keep any banking information on that computer. Open every email that seems to be from someone you know and click the link inside? At best, expect to be hacked. At worst, expect to turn your computer into a slave on the bad guy network. |
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Ceil J
My fear is that, if I download "free" designs from questionable sites (and I use more out of US designs than in US), that I will be downloading some kind of thing onto my computer that I don't want. Also, having stitched a free design recently which was a "see how our designs stitch out", I found that it didn't stitch out well at all. It seems the digitizer went around some parts of this red work design several times and some parts only once. When I first started out, the word "free" was like a magnet, now I'm much more cautious. I'm using Windows Defender, Superantispyware, and Malwarebytes on my PC and hope that is enough.
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Your risk of landing on a dodgy website is completely independent of where the site is. A site in Belarus could be on a server in Virginia, and a site in Washington DC could be on a server in Moldavia. The Internet has no borders, and it's up to individual sites to protect themselves against hacking. I use OpenDNS (https://www.opendns.com), which alerts me if I am about to access a website that has already been found to have threats on it. Setting it up is fairly complex for casual users, but it's free. Your selection of protective utilities is certainly adequate, maybe even overkill as they are overlapping in function.
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Patricia Ward
When I want to buy designs from other countries, I use a credit card through PayPal. Due to new banking regulations as of June, 2017, a US bank may not send funds like PayPal money from a checking account. So the PayPal customer service person told me to always use a credit card for that. I have bought designs from over seas designers like Stitch Delight, Hatched in Africa, and Secrets of Embroidery designers with no problems using my PayPal registered credit card. I will tell you where I had my credit card hacked... AMAZON purchasing something that was shipped from Hong Kong... so I always watch now where the item is being shipped from. There was no way that hubby and I bought $100. worth of Chinese food in Michigan and then another $150. of Chinese food in Atlanta GA all on the same day! Truly I understand your concerns; we always have to be so alert to what is happening. Pat in MD On Tue, Jan 30, 2018 at 8:22 AM, Lou Ann <louannbush@...> wrote: Many times I've visited sites (Stitch Delight is one that comes to mind) and I see designs that are beautiful and want to buy, BUT when I see |
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Janet
I buy a lot of designs on line. I love the in the hoop stuff. I tend to buy from designers referred by groups like you. I always use PayPal when available. No problems so far. I probably won’t buy a design if I have to use a credit card not through PayPal. In addition to extra security PayPal provides I would be to lazy to get up and get my credit card. 🤣I don’t anymore download free designs. I have way to much stuff already. With Amazon I use their credit card. I buy way to much on Amazon. :(. Used these methods for years. No problems so far. I have 2 credit cards that I use often. One for my local purchases and one when I travel. I check my activity several times a week.
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Janet On Jan 30, 2018, at 11:10 AM, Patricia Ward <ward.pm@...> wrote:
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Claire Schutz
Also, when using paypal they have a security key
you can purchase to use when purchasing. I have this and use it
all the time. Check out their site, I have been using this for
years and satisfied, Claire S.
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On 1/30/2018 10:10 AM, Patricia Ward
wrote:
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J Fraker
I don't like buying stuff from other countries either. I don't think there is any such thing as total security. The good thing about using a credit card is that if someone charges stuff on it, you aren't liable for the charges as long as you notify the credit card company quickly. At least that is the way my card is. One place that is great for buying designs is Oregon Patchworks. They have designs from digitizers all over. I doubt there's anything you'd want that you couldn't find on there. As a big plus, they often have huge discounts that you may not find on the digitizer's own website. You also get the downloads very quickly. I've bought a bunch of stuff from them and everything I've purchased so far has stitched out beautifully. I've purchased many designs for as little as a dollar or two apiece. Embroidery Library is also a good place to get designs for a good price although I've had mixed results with some of their designs, especially the older ones. Some stitch great, some do not. On Tue, Jan 30, 2018 at 8:22 AM, Lou Ann <louannbush@...> wrote: Many times I've visited sites (Stitch Delight is one that comes to mind) and I see designs that are beautiful and want to buy, BUT when I see |
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