If maintaining your online privacy is important, you’ll have to do much more than set strong passwords and disable cookies. I’ve found that anonymous shopping, in particular, has helped me toward this end.

Ever come across ads for products you just searched online? Or have you had your login credentials or other data leaked due to a security breach? While the former might seem like a minor annoyance, the same can’t be said about data breaches that pose a serious risk to your security in the real world.

Anonymous online shopping can protect you against risks like these and is even worth it if you just want to keep your purchases more discrete. After all, while e-commerce giants like Amazon allow you to use Amazon Lockers for maximum privacy, smaller companies seldom offer such services.

While anonymous online shopping has its perks, figuring out the best way to approach it can be tricky. Since going through this process myself, here are a few things I recommend to maintain your anonymity while shopping:

1. Use a Secondary Email Account

If you have just one email account for everything from personal communication with family and friends to online shopping, you’re doing yourself a great disservice. There are various reasons why you should have multiple email accounts, but the most important among these is that it keeps your primary inbox free of promotional emails and spam.

What’s more, it also limits how much of your information is leaked during a data breach. When creating an email account for online shopping, be sure not to include specific identifying details, like your name, birth year, or city. Instead, consider a generic username that no one can tie back to you.

2. Create Online Accounts Without Any Identifying Details

In the same vein, most e-commerce websites require you to set up an online account to proceed with your order. If you’re in the process of setting up an account, try not to use your real name or any other personal information. Also, avoid linking the account to your contact number unless it’s required.

3. Connect to a VPN While You Browse

There are various reasons why you should use a VPN, but if you’re shopping online, especially on a public Wi-Fi network, it becomes more or less essential if you want to maintain your anonymity.

When used the right way, VPNs can keep websites from tracking you via your IP address and, more importantly, stop hackers from gaining access to sensitive data, like your name and address, login credentials, and credit card details.

4. Pay with Prepaid Visa Cards

Speaking of credit cards, if you’re still using one to pay for your online orders, you may want to consider switching to a prepaid Visa card. In the case of traditional credit or debit cards, you can’t really control how long the retailer stores your payment details and card information. In case of a data breach, these details could be exposed to cybercriminals.

Regardless of the platform you’re shopping on, consider using a prepaid card to protect your financial information and minimize the chances of financial fraud.

5. Use a Locker or Alternate Delivery Address

I can’t recommend using a PO Box or Amazon Locker enough if you don’t want others gaining access to your home address. These alternate delivery points can usually accommodate multiple packages, allowing you to pick them all up in a single trip at your convenience.

This is also helpful if you’re going to be away from home for a few days and are concerned about theft.

Anonymous online shopping lets you take advantage of the convenience of e-commerce platforms and snag the best deals without compromising your digital privacy. Using these strategies, while practicing other data privacy habits, will help keep your personal information safe.