Amazon is the king of e-commerce, with total revenues in 2022 exceeding $500 million. It is one of those places on the internet where we store our bank cards, personal data, and many other sensitive information that should not be within reach of third parties. That’s precisely why we are going to explain how to protect your Amazon account and the settings you should activate to minimize the risks of cyberattacks.
These tips will serve you well whether you’ve had an Amazon account for a while or just decided to try Amazon Prime for free. Deleting your Amazon browsing history won’t make it more secure, so pay attention and take note of these tips.
In the first place, let’s see what we can do to make our Amazon account more secure. Later, we’ll dedicate some space to presenting different scenarios in which you can get involved because, if we’re not careful, someone could access our Amazon account and make unauthorized purchases in the online store. In case this last scenario comes true, we’ll also show you how to report a hack on your Amazon account. Let’s get started!
Protecting your Amazon account: Three tips that work
As you already know, to make a purchase on Amazon, or to subscribe to its Amazon Prime program, you need a valid debit or credit card. You’ll also need to provide your address for the corresponding shipments, although you have the option of asking for them to be left at certain authorized establishments. That’s why you should follow these steps to maximize the security of your account.
Get a virtual card
Before entering the number of your usual bank card, you should consider requesting a new one to use it only for purchases. These prepaid or wallet cards are very secure because you’ll only load them with the amount of your purchase. If they manage to access your account and steal its data, the most they can take from you is that amount. Some recommended options are Revolut or N26.
Activate Amazon two-step verification
Two-step verification on Amazon and many other internet services adds an extra layer of security: not only do you have to enter your correct password, but you also have to enter a code that will be sent to your personal, unique, and non-transferable mobile phone.
- To activate two-step verification on Amazon
- go to ‘My account’ and select ‘Login & Security’.
- Then, click on ‘Activate’.
- On the next screen, select ‘Get started’.
- Now, enter your mobile phone.
- This is where the unique code will be sent to, which you must enter once you validate your credentials.
Another option is to use an authentication app: with this method, you won’t need to have internet. Once you’ve accepted the previous step, you’ll have received a text message on the mobile phone you put in before. And that’s it! You’ve now activated Amazon’s two-step verification. Create a strong password that combines numbers, letters, and characters
Create a strong password
It’s very important to know how to create a strong password for any internet service. There are some basic tips you should follow when creating it, such as not using personal data or anything related to you, such as your birth date or your partner’s name, etc., and using a different one from the rest of the services you’ve signed up for.
If you already use a password on Amazon and think you can improve it, you can use an internet password generator like LastPass. It’s very simple: you just have to go to this page and create it