• Is it really safe to order over the Internet?

There has been quite a bit of hype about the dangers of sending your credit card information over the Internet. The truth is, it's probably safer to use your credit card over the Internet than it is to use it in a restaurant, retail store, or with a mail order company. On the Internet, no one is peeking over your shoulder or digging through your garbage. And there is no paper trail. Technologically speaking, it is easier to tap your phone line than it is to steal a credit card number through the Internet. Companies like MasterCard and Visa fully endorse the use of secure order forms like you will find at our web site.

• How do I know that my credit card number won't be stolen?

If you are using version 3 or later of Microsoft Internet Explorer, any version of Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, or other contemporary web browser (Google Chrome, Opera), your credit card transactions are fully encrypted and secure when you purchase products at our web site. This is accomplished using SSL — the highest form of security on the Internet.

Today, most people use version 6, 7, or 8 of Microsoft Internet Explorer, version 3 of Mozilla Firefox, or version 3 or 4 of Apple Safari. If you are using any of these browsers to visit web sites on the Internet, you can tell if your browsing session is secure by looking for a closed lock icon on the status bar at the bottom of your browser window. If the lock is open (or missing altogether), your browsing session is not secure.

 Your browsing session is secure.

 Your browsing session is not secure.

• So what's the bottom line on using credit cards on the Internet?

We believe that purchasing goods from a secure web site is completely safe and that you can be confident that your credit information will not be stolen or misued. We have never experienced a problem arising from using credit cards over the Internet. However, you should still use your own judgement and be as cautious with your credit card information as you see fit.

• What if I don't want to use my credit card online after all?

If you decide that you would be more comfortable not sending your credit card information over the Internet, you can still order products from us. If you prefer, you can call us toll-free at 1-888-665-4842.

A web browser with SSL uses encryption to scramble the data you send to a web site. When these seemingly random characters are received by the web server, the server's SSL software converts them back into useful information. With SSL, your web interactions are truly private.

How does it do this? SSL uses a scheme involving "public" and "private" digital keys. The server gives the browser its public key, which the browser uses to encrypt all transmissions. The server uses its private key (which is never sent to anyone) to decrypt the transmissions.

In addition to providing privacy, SSL was designed to answer a related question: how do you know you are really communicating with the web site you intended?