Sunday 18 January 2004

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How do I make payments online without disclosing my credit card details to each retailer?

The most convenient and secure way would be to use a service such as Pay Pal (currently the most widely used online payment system). The idea is that you create a free account, register your credit or debit card with them and then whenever you wish to purchase something online, you provide the retailer with your Pay Pal ID rather than your credit card details. Obviously the less people who have a record of your credit card details, the less likely you are to become a victim of credit card fraud.

Furthermore, you can use your account to pay individuals who do not have access to an online credit card transaction system - eBay members who are not selling goods on behalf of a registered commercial enterprise for instance.

Although I've only ever had good experiences with Pay Pal, lots of other people haven't been so lucky, so make sure you do your research before signing up. For more information refer to No Pay Pal or Pay Pal Warning.

Other companies offering similar services include: Fire Pay, No Chex, Instabill, CC Now and Amazon. I can't personally endorse or admonish any of these unfortunately since I've never used them, however, a good place to find impartial reviews would be the online bill payment section of Epinions.

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