MARQUETTE -- If you're buying your holiday gifts online this year, you have to be aware of what you're dealing with.
"It's a risk, a lot of the time, when you're purchasing something online; sometimes you don't always know who you're dealing with, whether it's eBay or things of that nature, and you can go through PayPal or whatever, but it's still a risk at some level," says Detective Michael Kohler of the Marquette Police Department.
Police suggest you only shop online from reputable retailers. Search through reviews, and make sure the retailer has a detailed customer care policy.
Getz's gets more than half of its annual business from online orders, and the biggest piece of advice they give customers when ordering online is to avoid using a debit card.
"I see multiple issues with debit cards, and it's no one's fault. Just the way that the debit cards are handled by the banking industry, I see issues where people have over-drafted without them knowing," says John Spiragelli, V.P. of Marketing and e-Commerce for Getz’s.
Most scams start small, attempting to gain your trust before cheating you out of more money. Always limit the amount of information you give out.
"We get identity theft and credit card fraud all the time, it's a weekly basis, and so around the this time, of course, it will pick up a little bit, but we're steady with these types of complaints," Detective Kohler adds.
You should also make sure the Website is secure, check the HTML bar for an indication that it is, like a padlock icon. Avoid pop-ups or e-mail surveys, promising rewards for participating.
And most importantly, Detective Kohler cautions, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
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