Despite the slow economy, internet traffic increased 11 percent compared to Black Friday 2007.  As more and more older adults are going on-line for shopping, they are seeing that the stress of wading through crowded stores is eliminated but a different stress may replace the physical... The mental stress is sometimes elevated when items are out of stock, websites don't work and you worry if your credit information will fall into the wrong hands.  Following is a review of what's hot and how to approach the internet shopping experience.

Data from PriceGrabber.com shows that online consumers are taking advantage of promotions on popular electronics including: LCD and Plasma TV's, Blu-Ray Disc Players, Digital SLR Cameras, Laptops, and Video Game Consoles.

"Prior to the Black Friday weekend, 71 percent of shoppers intended to spend less money this holiday season compared to last year and 66 percent planned to give practical gifts," said Ron LaPierre, president of PriceGrabber.com. "Thanksgiving and Black Friday traffic shows that value drives consumer spending. Consumers are responding to aggressive promotions and price drops on popular electronics."

Top 10 Categories and Percent Growth over Black Friday 2007

    1.  Women's Boots - 203%

    2.  Watches - 202%

    3.  Blu-ray/HD-DVD Players - 147%

    4.  Women's Sleep & Lounge Wear - 415%

    5.  Games & Puzzles - 151%

    6.  Women's Jackets - 110%

    7.  Music - 96%

    8.  Headphones - 103%

    9.  Women's Dresses - 107%

    10. Women's Casual Shoes - 143%

Most popular products on Black Friday

    1.  Nintendo Wii Console

    2.  Ugg Australia 'Classic Short' Boot

    3.  Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-Ray Disc Player

    4.  Samsung LN52A650 52" LCD TV

    5.  Nintendo Wii Fit

    6.  Panasonic TH-42PX80U 42" Plasma TV

    7.  Sennheiser HD 555 Headphones

    8.  Canon EOS Rebel XSi Black SLR Digital Camera Kit

    9.  Acer Aspire One AOA110-1295 Notebook

    10. Canon PowerShot A590 IS Black Digital Camera

1. Always use your home computer. Steer clear of public computers in a hotel's business center, for example. They could have spyware that gives other users access to your financial information.

2. Look for the color bar or padlock at the bottom of the retailer's Web site. That's your assurance that the information you enter is encrypted so no one can copy it.

3. Type in the retailer's online address rather than replying to an e-mail from the retailer. That will prevent you from being reeled in by a "phisher" using a fake e-mail and Web address that emulates a real site.

4. Create complex passwords and don't use the same one for all your accounts. It's particularly important to use a different password for your MySpace or Facebook account.

5. Use a password manager. This software, which is often free, makes it easy to store multiple passwords so that you have to remember only one master password. You can download a password manager at KeePass.com or other Web sites.

Make sure the site specifies the type of encryption. It should have the letters AES -- for Advanced Encryption Standard -- which tells you it meets the highest standard available. Also check the number of bits; the larger the number, the more secure the encryption. Currently 256 is the highest available.

6. Use a single-use credit-card number. Bank of America, Citibank and Discover offer these numbers to cardholders (Bank of America's ShopSafe program is available only to its Visa and Mastercard account holders who bank online; its American Express cardholders can't use the service). You receive a number that is linked to your account but is not your credit-card number. Discover and Bank of America let you use one number to make multiple purchases from the same merchant. Citi's virtual account numbers can be used only once.

7. Consider using an alternative payment service, such as Bill Me Later or eBillMe, if your credit-card issuer does not offer a single-use number. EBillMe is available to anyone who banks online. You merely have to register the service as a payment option. Then, when you have finished shopping and are checking out, you enter eBillMe as the payee and receive an e-mailed copy of the bill.

Sources:  PR Newswire, Businesswire