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Your Credit Card is Secure on our Site |
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We take your security very seriously. We know that your
credit card security is our business,
and we do everything possible to make your transactions safe.
What We Do With Your Credit Card
We validate (but do not charge) your card when you first place
your order with us. This helps us process your order more quickly
because we can catch typos and you can correct them right
away.
We charge your card only when we actually
ship your products out to you.
All your credit card information is transmitted encrypted,
and kept encrypted and password
protected. It is not accessible from the Internet or web in any way.
How We Ensure Your Credit Card Security
Our site
uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) to
ensure that your personal and sensitive data
-- credit card number, name, address,
and so on -- is transmitted securely, every time.
In addition, we use internal
security measures to further increase your data security.
When we ask for your credit card number or other personal
information we transfer that information from your computer to ours
via Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). SSL encrypts your data before it is
transmited. If someone "listens in" on the wire, they'll only get
encrypted information.
Yes, even encryption can be broken, but it's not easy.
If your browser uses the short or 40-bit key, in theory your key can
be broken by a knowledgable person who has access
to networks of workstation-class computers. If your browser is using
a 128-bit key, then breaking the encryption would take longer than the age of the
universe -- even if you could harness all the computers in the world.That's pretty secure!
The Risks to You
Forget the Internet for a moment. When you give someone your name and credit card
over the phone or in person, you run two risks. These risks
are:
- The person receiving the card will copy your card number and name
and use that information fraudulently.
- Another person will overhear or find your card
number and name -- say in
a trash can of carbons -- and use it fraudulently.
When you send your credit card over the Internet, you run LESS of
a risk than when you read it over the phone to a mail
order company, or hand it to a waiter in a restaurant.
Why? Because we don't use carbons. We don't write your information down. We don't
repeat your number aloud in a room full of telemarketers. You enter your data and
it goes directly into our system, where it is stored encrypted and password-protected.
Buying from our site with a credit card is no more risk than paying for
dinner out.
What if Someone DOES Get Your Name and Card Number?
In most cases, your credit card company won't charge you for a
charge you didn't make. In most places, by law, you cannot be liable for
more than $50 on any charge made fraudulently on your card, as
long as you notify your credit card company in a timely fashion. So,
in fact, you're probably already protected. While most places give legal
protection to credit cards, debit cards are often covered by different
laws. If you are using a debit card you should check your local
consumer protection laws.
About Encryption
The best encryption available requires that your browser use a 128-bit
key or better. If you're interested in finding out more about
encryption issues and the politics of encryption, take a look at the
Electronic Privacy Information Center.
How Secure are You With Just the Short Key?
If your browser uses a 40-bit key for encryption, then someone very
clever who has access to high-speed computers could in theory
snoop on your transaction with us and gather up the credit card and
personal information and do something fraudulent with it.
But using current technology, they would still have to spend many
hours and use a lot of expensive hardware on every single
transaction to do this. It just isn't very cost effective.
Remember that even just using the short key over the Internet is
far more secure than handing your credit card to a waiter in a
restaurant, or reading it over the phone to an operator, where you
can't be sure who else might be listening or copying the information.
If Your Browser Doesn't Encrypt
Most modern commercial web browsers handle encrypted communication,
but some browsers don't. If yours doesn't, then you will not be able to
place orders through our on-line store. But you can always call us and order
by phone at 866-787-4376 Our hours are: M-F 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Pacific Time
If your browser cannot support secure transmissions, you may want
to obtain a new browser, such as
Netscape Navigator or
Microsoft Internet Explorer. |