Don't let the Grinch spoil your Christmas!

Dashing through the snow, hot chocolate with mini marshmellows, and spending holiday laughs with family and friends are just some of my favorite holiday past times.

My least favorite is....Shopping! Yuck! I hate grouchy crowds. It doesn't help that I wait until the last minute to buy gifts. For that, you will find me lurking for the hottest deals online. But before you whip out your credit cards keep this in mind...

1. Beware of people selling merchandise via unsolicited emailSpammers take advantage of the holidays, so expect more email with offers for Rolex watches and other luxury watches (in late 2004 these offers rose by more than 300%).

2. Don't be fooled by holiday email Virus and Trojan horse writers often use holiday themed "e-cards" and other tricks to attack unsuspecting users. For instance, the prevalent Zafi-D worm spreads as an attachment in an email message wishing "Happy Hollydays".

3. Be on the alert for phishing scams During the shopping season money and credit are on the minds of many consumers, but giving out confidential information is a no-no, no matter how real the request looks.

4. Think before you click Be wary of clicking on links contained inside HTML emails because they may direct you to a different website entirely, set up by the hackers.

5. Keep up-to-date Make sure your anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam and firewall software are up to date, and that your browser and operating system include the latest patches and fixes. More viruses, worms and Trojan horses were seen last month than any previous month in history so it's more important than ever to run the latest protection.

6. Don't try, don't buy, don't reply No matter how tempting or authentic an email may seem, unless you are 100% certain it is legitimate, delete it. If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is.

7. Consumers should continue to step up their vigilance in 2006 by only giving their personally identifiable information (PII) - for example name and address, phone number, bank account, credit card number, email, etc - to trusted parties, and they should shred all discarded documents containing PII.

Be a safe shopper! If not, without fail the Grinch will sneak up on you and steal your Christmas out from under you. Happy Holidays from all of us at SafeCycle.com