Although one can trace the ancient history of the Internet some three decades back, the world-wide web dates only from the early nineties. The era of active e-commerce is younger still: it extends not much beyond the first appearance of this Family Games web-site in 1995. With new users still coming on-line by the thousands each day, it's no wonder that for many people the Internet still has the aura of a new frontier: full of potential, but somewhat intimidating; an intriguing place, but not necessarily a safe one.

In another decade or two, on-line practices and institutions may have matured to the point where anyone can venture into the many market-places of the web without fear, but for now the novice's wariness is justified. The unscrupulous, the devious, and the downright wicked have been no slower to get on-line than anyone else. Too often we may find that they were there before us, know the ropes better than we do, and stand ready to bilk us at the first opportunity.

The unscrupulous, the devious, and the downright wicked have been no slower to get on-line than anyone else... But we can cope.

And yet, though the dangers are real enough, defending oneself from fraudsters on the Internet is not harder than in the "real world". We can cope. With due care and common sense, the web can be traversed with confidence, and buyers and sellers can come together to carry out their business without fear.

The most convenient Internet shopping tool, for buyers and sellers alike, is the credit card, for it allows purchases large and small to be made rapidly, at any distance, and with a low cost overhead. However, many users are understandably nervous about divulging their card information on-line. How can one know that the merchant deserves one's trust? How can one be sure that the number will not be intercepted on its journey across the net, and unauthorized charges made? What recourse does one have against abuse?

Whom do you trust? Use the same kinds of criteria for judging merchants on the Internet as you would in the physical world. Do they seem honest? See how they present themselves; read what they have to say. Do their places of business - in this case a web-site - look well-maintained, polished and professional? Do they have a reputation and a solid history? Do they promise too much, or ask too little? You don't need a great deal of web experience before you can start to distinguish the trustworthy sites from the fly-by-nighters.

Will my card number be intercepted? This is one question with a simple technical solution: never provide your card number on any web-page that is not marked as "secure" in your browser. Both Netscape and Internet Explorer use a small closed-padlock icon to indicate a secure page. When that icon is visible, communications between your browser and the web-site are encrypted, and safe from prying eyes. (To see what the icon looks like in your browser, visit this Family Games order form, which will open in a new window. You don't have to fill in the form - just close the window once you've learned to recognize the padlock icon.)

When the padlock icon is visible, communications between your browser and the site are safe from prying eyes.

What recourse do I have if my trust is abused? Credit card companies are at least as anxious as anyone else to assure the security of Internet commerce. Check your monthly statement. If your card has been charged illegitimately - and if you follow the guidelines above, this is most unlikely - just notify your bank. They will cancel the charge and you will lose nothing but a little faith in human nature.

N.B. To save your own and everyone else's time, do try to be quite certain that the charge really is invalid before you ask the bank to make a chargeback. The company name that appears on a credit card statement often won't match the name of the web-site where you made a purchase. In our own case, the web-site is "Family Games" but the company name is "AHA! Software Inc." Go by the date and amount of the transaction instead.