Tips for Paying Your Bills Online

Identity theft is a major concern for anyone using the Internet. Here are five tips for online bill paying that can afford you a fast, easy, and effective method to pay your bills without concerns.

• When setting up an online account with a credit card company or other creditor, ensure that the company has the most advanced online security available. They should have encryption software as well as a sign-out session if there is no activity after a number of minutes. Also, take the time to read their security page and the information given therein. If you have any questions whatsoever, call the company directly.
• If you have enrolled in a credit card company's online bill-paying program, you will receive an email each month reminding you that your payment is due. But do not sign on from the email link. Instead, bookmark the site after you've enrolled in the program and use the bookmark as your link to the company's website. It's possible that you may receive an email from a credit card company asking you to verify your account information. Such emails are almost always bogus. Do not respond or click on the link provided in such emails. Instead, call the company and ask if they have sent out an email asking you for verification.
• When you do sign on to the company site, have your username and password readily available. Conduct your business as quickly as possible – this includes checking your account for suspicious activity – and then sign out. After you sign out, clear your computer's cache so that the information is removed from its history. Although the steps to clear one browser may differ slightly from another, clearing them is not a difficult task. This will remove the record of all the URL sites that you have visited during your time online, and it's especially recommended if you use a cable modem.
• After you've paid your bill, you will receive an email on or close to the date you have chosen for payment. Make sure you do receive the email. If you do not, call the company and ask why an email was not sent. Also, go to your online account and check to ensure that payment was posted.
• Change your account password monthly. Some credit card companies offer a security number that you can utilize after you sign on. For example, after signing on using your regular username and password, a new box will appear asking for the appropriate security code number. Check with your online bill-paying companies to determine if they offer this service.
• Any steps that you can take to decrease the possibility of online theft of your information are also worthwhile. Get the best security software that you can for your computer, then run weekly scans and change your system's password monthly.