FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 5, 2019
Consumer Affairs marks Consumer Protection Week
Seeks to educate residents about cybercrime
FREEHOLD, NJ – The Monmouth County Division of Consumer Affairs is joining with federal, state, local government agencies and national organizations to celebrate National Consumer Protection Week.
National Consumer Protection Week is a time to encourage people and businesses to learn more about avoiding scams and understanding consumer rights.
“Cybercrime is the fastest growing crime in the United States,” said Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, liaison to the Division of Consumer Affairs. “What our residents need to understand is that we are all vulnerable and we need to protect ourselves.”
From March 3 to 10, the Division of Consumer Affairs will be reminding residents to be aware of cyber fraud and offering steps to protect individuals from deception.
The County reminds residents to look at website privacy policies before submitting a name, email address or other personal information. “The privacy policy must clearly state how the information will be used and whether or not the information will be distributed to other organizations,” said Annmarie DeVito, Director of Consumer Affairs.
The Division of Consumer Affairs offers these additional tips:
- Only do business with reputable companies – Make sure you trust the business and it is an established organization with a credible reputation.
- Do not use your primary email address in online submissions – Submitting your email address could result in spam. If you do not want your primary email account flooded with unwanted messages, consider opening an additional email account for use online.
- Avoid submitting credit card information online.
- If you must shop online, devote one credit card to those purchases – Keep a minimum credit line on the account to limit the amount of charges an attacker can accumulate.
- Avoid using debit cards for online purchases – Credit cards usually offer some protection against identity theft and may limit the monetary amount you will be responsible for paying. Debit cards, however, do not offer that protection.
- Avoid allowing a website to remember your password. If your password is stored, your profile and any account information you have provided on that site are readily available if an attacker gains access to your computer.
Consumer Affairs is a law enforcement agency, created and funded by the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders. It protects against consumer fraud and dishonest business practices by enforcing the state Consumer Fraud Act and many other regulations.
Additional information about cyber scams and consumer affairs programs can be found on the County website www.VisitMonmouth.com, by calling 732-431-7900 or emailing ConsumerAffairs@co.monmouth.nj.us. The office is open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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