Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis Professor James P. Nehf offers five tips for online shopping.

1. Before you give out sensitive information, make sure the page is hosted in a secured server.  When you see the pate at https: instead of http:, the page is secured .

2. Purchase only from retailers that you trust. If you don't know the retailer, do some investigation via a Google or Yahoo search, or at bbbonline.org to get information about the company's reputation.

3. Use a credit card instead of a debit/check card. If you use a debit/check card and your debit card information is lost, your bank account can be wiped out. But if you lose credit card information, you are not responsible for any charge.

4. Be aware of any phishing scam.   Do not buy from a Web site that you found only after you clicking on a link in an email.

5. Keep your virus software up to date. Malicious software may steel your personal information.   This can be particularly serious when your connectivity is cable or DSL.

Nehf is chair of the consumer subcommittee of the Cyberspace Committee of the American Bar Association’s business law section. He teaches contracts, consumer law and commercial law at the law school that is located on the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus.