Chapter 3 & 4 Assestment

1.) Three methods mentioned by the author that allow you to browse websites without harming your computer are getting anti-virus software, losing internet explorer and start using firefox as well as using a firewall in order to block unauthorized attempts to access your computer.

2.) "Proxy Bidding" is an automated bid, that bids for you each time you're outbid. For example, if the maximum you are willing to pay is $20 on a product that has a current high bid of $10, "proxy bidding" will automatically bid a dollar higher than the high bid until that $20 limit is reached. "Proxy Bidding" serves the purpose of helping the bidder pay less for products that may not reach their maximun paying price during the auction.

3.) Sniping is entering your bid at the very last possible moment before an auction closes. It serves the purpose of not allowing other interested bidders to react and outbid you, allowing you to go on and win the auction.

4.) Triangulation occurs when the seller in an auction uses a stolen credit card to buy the product the buyer had just won in the auction from an online store. The true owner of the credit card sees the charge, he goes to his bank to dispute the charge, who in turn finds the address that the product was sent to, the buyer's house. In order to avoid this scam the author suggests that you should never make a payment using a wire transfer. Also, if you recieve the package and it is marked as a gift and the address of the person who paid for it is hidden, you should immediately contact the auction site or where the product came from.

5.) Otherwise known as "single use numbers", virtual credit card numbers are issued by a credit card company who generates a unique and temporary 16 digit number that looks and works just like a regular credit card number. Although these virtual credit card numbers come with a spending limit that is determined by the owner. This serves the purpose of protecting the owner of the credit card from hackers who will be rejected if they try to use the virtual credit card number.