Are you ready for Cyber Monday?

If you’re unfamiliar with the term, Cyber Monday is the Internet equivalent of Black Friday, what most retailers describe as the biggest shopping day of the year. I love Cyber Monday – it’s a great chance to snag deals on items that may otherwise be out of my budget. I even included some of my favorite deals at the end of this article.

Although the excitement Cyber Monday generates is probably on par with Black Friday, it is vastly different. How so? The most obvious distinction, of course, is that you’ll be doing all of your shopping online. Another drastic difference is that thieves are much more prevalent on Cyber Monday – and a lot more likely to be successful stealing from you. To keep your shopping experience fun and stress-free, consider a few suggestions.

• Compare prices Believe it or not, comparison shopping is actually a great deterrent to spam. Why? Well, if you take the initiative and shop around for the best deal, you’re a lot less likely to fall for a scam. When you get an email for a deal that sounds too good to be true, you can reason, “I don’t need to buy this $10 printer from an online retailer I’ve never heard of because I can get one for just a few dollars more from a retailer I’m familiar with.” Remember, if a deal sounds too good to be true... Make sure not to buy until you’ve looked around a bit.
  
• Take off as much as you can. Don’t you dare checkout until you’ve searched for a coupon code! If you don’t have a coupon in front of you, check the retailer’s website or a reputable coupon site like RetailMeNot.com. I love that site and always check it before I complete an online order. Most online retailers will allow you to use discount codes on top of site-wide discounts, and if not, it can’t hurt to try. Again, if you are proactive in finding the best deals, you will a lot less likely to fall for scams offering something for nothing. There is no reason for the “promo code” box on your checkout page to be empty when you are ready to checkout.

If you forget everything else in this article, remember these five rules for Cyber Monday:

• Don’t click any links or open any attachments in emails on Cyber Monday.
  
• Look for the secure indicators – https or the lock icon BEFORE you type in any personal information.
  
• Don’t use bookmarks or other links – just go directly to the source – the website itself.
  
• To ensure that your protection updated before you shop, run your AV program after you finish reading this article.
  
• Today is NOT the day for visiting websites that you’ve never heard of.

Sound extreme? Good! You should take extreme caution shopping online. If you do, you can shop safely, comfortably, and have fun doing it. After you’ve completed your online shopping, pat yourself on the back. You managed to avoid long lines, snag some great deals, and all from the comfort of your own home.

As mentioned, here are my current favorite Cyber Monday deals:

TigerDirect

• Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Software – Detects and Destroys Malware (Windows OS) – $14.99
  
• Gateway Desktop - AMD Athalon II X64 2.9 GHz quadcore processor, 4 GB DDR3 RAM, 1 TB HDD, 10 USB ports, Windows 7 Home Premium, and more... - $690 (wireless keyboard, mouse included)
  
• Sentry At Home – Parental Control Filters Inappropriate Content for Children - $5.99
  
  Dell
  
• Inspiron Laptop - a 15.6 -inch laptop, 4GB, DDR3 RAM, 500GB, 2.4 GHz, Windows 7 - $580 (free shipping)
  
• Monitor - a 20-inch widescreen LED monitor - $85 (free shipping)
  
  Amazon
  
• Epson All-In-One Wireless Printer - Wireless, prints, scans, and copies, inkjet - $100 (free shipping if you’re an Amazon Prime member)
  
  Walmart
  
• External Hard drive – 2 TB HDD, Western Digital brand - $94