How can you tell that you are paying on a secure page? How can you avoid your payment card number leaking? Here is an overview of the most important rules of online payment safety.

​

Whenever you pay online in an e-shop, check that the site is secure. You can recognise a secure website by the padlock symbol in the top left corner of the browser. This is what is known as an SSL certificate, confirming that the domain really belongs to the website. When you click the symbol, information is shown about who had the certificate issued. If the website's name is there, it means the page is trustworthy.

In the past it was common for people to be sent fraudulent emails linking to fake internet banking or e-shop pages. The page name was misspelled and the pages themselves were not secured with an SSL certificate. Always read the web address carefully and check that it is spelled correctly.

​

Before you decide to buy goods from a particular e-shop, check it out thoroughly. Especially with an e-shop you do not know, check:

At GoPay, for example, we consistently make sure that an e-shop has its terms and conditions and other required information on its website. An e-shop that does not meet these requirements cannot work with us.

​

One of the most important security features is undoubtedly 3D Secure. It is a technology that allows the cardholder to be authenticated simply and quickly.

After the payment card details are entered, the bank sends the paying customer an SMS with a numeric code. The customer enters this code into the internet banking interface that appears once 3D Secure is triggered. Entering the 3D Secure code is a necessary step to complete the payment. Without it the payment will not go through.

What to do if the SMS does not arrive

In exceptional cases the SMS with the code may not arrive. There can be several causes – from an incorrectly set phone number to technical problems at the bank. If you do not receive any code, contact your bank. The bank should advise you what to do next.

Verification does not always happen by SMS code. It can also be done using other, more modern methods. You may now come across your bank asking you to verify the payment in your mobile banking app as part of 3D Secure verification.

​

Always keep control over who has access to your payment card. If you know your partner uses it regularly, you do not need to worry about your payment details. Make sure your children cannot get to it, as they could easily buy whatever they fancy.

Be careful not to pass your card number to anyone else, even by mistake. Definitely do not photograph your payment card or send it as an email attachment or via social media.

Also be alert in situations where you receive an email supposedly sent by your bank, trying to extract your card number. Neither your bank nor a payment gateway or other financial institution can ever ask you for your full card number (at most a few digits), for security reasons.

​

This rule applies to situations where you need to pay online in someone else's browser – for example in a café, at a neighbour's, on a company computer and so on.

In such cases, do not stay signed in to your card, either within the e-shop, as we offer at GoPay (the save card feature), or within the browser (a feature offered by Google).

​

If you want to be as sure as possible that your payment card is safe, set limits for online payments.

We recommend setting a default limit of CZK 1,500. When you want to pay a higher amount, raise the limit and lower it again after the payment. If your card were stolen, the thief would not be able to pay more than the limit you set.

​

We touched on the topic of phishing scammers a few paragraphs above. Scammers most often attack through fake emails or social media. Usually they try to get hold of your details, such as payment card numbers, your card PIN, your phone PIN, passwords to your apps and so on.

Attacks can come through fake emails where the sender pretends to be a bank, the police, a mobile operator and so on. Remember that such institutions can never ask you for your full card number, various passwords or other valuable details, for security reasons. Do not respond in any way to suspicious emails trying to extract your details.

You can read about how to defend yourself against attackers on social media in the article How not to fall for online scammers.