is it safe to use your credit card for online payment

[ethonious]

hi there people

it's me the newbie again...
can anybody please help me on whether i should use my credit card to pay for an account for on of the news sites,also is it safe to use a trial say from giganews
i had a rapidshare account like 6yrs ago and the downloads were quite fast also i paid with my c/card
no problems...

i really want to start downloading but want to be safe and as far as i hear it's better to download from the news site

thanks and regards in advance

"E"

 

[nano]

hi there people

it's me the newbie again...
can anybody please help me on whether i should use my credit card to pay for an account for on of the news sites,also is it safe to use a trial say from giganews
i had a rapidshare account like 6yrs ago and the downloads were quite fast also i paid with my c/card
no problems...

i really want to start downloading but want to be safe and as far as i hear it's better to download from the news site

thanks and regards in advance

"E"

I use my credit card a lot for online paying... bought a rapidshare account the other day, no problems.

Just make sure the site has some sort of secure payment implemented, then there should be no worries.

 

[LazyLion]

Yes, Giganews and Astraweb are both reputable companies and have been in business for many years. I have used both.

I am currently still with Astraweb, and they bill my card monthly on the 6th day of each month.

I once used my credit for one of those "downloading" sites which turned out to be a scam because all they do is send you some torrent software and show you how to download torrents.

When I asked for a refund though they quite willingly gave me a refund.

If they had not, I would have asked my credit card company to reverse it on the basis of fraud.

At least you have that protection as well.

 

[labratza]

i would say go for astraweb they are the best out there. been using them for a while and loving them

 

[howardb]

+1 for AstraWeb @ $11 per month. I used to be with Giganews, and was happy with their service, but changed to AstraWeb when the $11 special was launched - no issues at all with the payment or service.

 

[D.B.Cooper]

Probably safer than using it in a restaurant where the waiter could possibly skim the card. So long as the transaction page is encrypted and you're buying from a known source it should be safe. Frankly, I prefer to use Paypal whenever possible. I prefer that to using my card directly.

 

[PeterCH]

hi there people

it's me the newbie again...
can anybody please help me on whether i should use my credit card to pay for an account for on of the news sites,also is it safe to use a trial say from giganews
i had a rapidshare account like 6yrs ago and the downloads were quite fast also i paid with my c/card
no problems...

i really want to start downloading but want to be safe and as far as i hear it's better to download from the news site

thanks and regards in advance

"E"

Using CC online is safe. Even if you get phished - unless they also phish you Visa 3D Secure or MasterCard equivalent you will not be held liable for any transactions. Just check your statements regularly.

If you enter your CC number and details into a fake site and a scammer uses the number to buy goods online all you have to do is dispute those charges. The merchant has to prove that it was you who made those purchases, that's why the billing and shipping address has to usually match and often the merchants ask for a faxed copy of the card and a passport or similar.

If you notice an unauthorised charge on your CC you contact your bank and file a dispute. They investigate - and virtually 100% of the time they will issue a chargeback to the merchant who processed the transaction and withdraw his money and put it back into your account. He has to prove that it was you who made the transaction. Since no signature is involved that can be tricky. They could fax the bank a copy of your passport and scanned credit card which the scammer sent them but then again there is no way a scammer would have that if you used your CC number in a hacked site.

The only exception is Verified by Visa (3D Secure) and Mastercard SecureCode. That is an additional code which you have to enter for some sites (which have signed up). If a scammer gets that code and has all your other CC info, they could buy stuff on your card and the merchant will not be forced to refund the money to you. Watch out for Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode. It's there to protect the Merchant and not YOU. It can also be spoofed as well (a hacker site can also pretend to be a Vefiried by Visa authenticator site).

 

[Conradl]

Credit card is definitely the safest option - the nice thing is that it really does not cost the consumer that much to use it (the costs are covered by the merchant)....

 

[ethonious]

thanks guys

really appreciate the feedback

e