Following the news of the data breach at Kiddicare that compromised names, delivery addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses of up to 800,000 customers, Lee Munson, Senior Researcher at Comparitech.com comments:
"If there is one thing we have learned from the massive data breach at Kiddicare it is that the old saying – caveat emptor – now applies to online purchases long after the transaction has been completed.
"And buyers really should beware, as the leaking of their personal and (in other cases) payment details can have far-reaching consequences for both their finances and their very identities.
"Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken to minimise the damage caused by such a breach.
"The obvious one is to discover whether your details have been leaked in the first place and that’s where sites such as Troy Hunt’s excellent HaveIBeenPwned come into play.
"If your details are out there in the wild, start contacting banks, credit card companies and the credit reference agencies immediately for the help you will require.
"But before that, long before that in fact, you should be considering how you can mitigate the risk of a data breach in the first place.
"Here are some tips to follow before you buy anything online:
Think about which sites you share your data with – do they look legitimate
Are you being asked to submit more personal information than you think is necessary? If so, ask yourself why.
Can you pay by credit card? If so, any subsequent fraudulent use of the card will probably be covered.
Can you check out as a ‘guest,’ perhaps paying via a third party such as PayPal, instead of sharing your data at all?
"None of the above will completely remove the possibility that your personal information will be stolen from a website, but they will make it far less likely."