The 1st December is Cyber Monday, which is set to be the biggest day of the year for online shopping.
It is noticeably different from Black Friday - the day after Thanksgiving in America, when many people are on holiday and visit shops to search for pre-Christmas discounts.
Cyber Monday is the peak time of the year for eCommerce. In 2013, it was the biggest online shopping day in history, according to IBM, and this year it's set to be even bigger as more people choose to shop through a computer, tablet or smartphone.
The UK is at the forefront of this: 90% of internet users in the UK now shop online, ahead of 70% in the US, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Thanks to developments like super-fast broadband, the explosion in online shopping has been so rapid that there are still murky, unresolved issues around privacy and payment details, although big companies like Google and Apple are starting to offer clearer information to shoppers.
Cyber Monday is every day
We don't understand what we are paying for... (01 of06)
Open Image Modal... or how we are paying for it. Information around payment online can often be buried in footnotes which are long and complex, the OECD has found.
And people rarely bother to read the small print - experiments showed many people agree to terms handing over their soul or their first born child to a company, without noticing the bizarre details. (credit:Lukas Schulze/DPA)
Kids are spending thousands on 'free' games(02 of06)
Open Image ModalMany children - often using their parents' devices - run up charges while they play “free” online games which often offer extra levels and virtual incentives in exchange for real money.
It's not just small, rogue companies that are letting kids do this(03 of06)
Open Image ModalIn the US, Google and Apple have had to pay out millions of dollars to parents whose children racked up bills from online games without their permission, and also promised to introduce tools to help adults stop kids from spending money online without knowing.
A third case against Amazon is ongoing. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Privacy fears haven't gone away(04 of06)
Open Image ModalThere are many concerns around privacy that haven't been resolved as online shopping has rocketed.
Many people don't understand what is being done with their data - and there are many different parties involved in one online transaction which all get access to your information and can share it with third parties. (credit:Colin Anderson via Getty Images)
Sorting mistakes out isn't simple(05 of06)
Open Image ModalIf you have unexpected charges on something like a mobile phone bill, it isn't easy to work out where they have come from, and if you're entitled to any refund.
"You can end up having either to navigate a maze of legislation that may govern your transaction or enjoy no level of protection at all," writes the OECD's Wyckoff. (credit:Image Source via Getty Images)
We're unsure about buying from abroad(06 of06)
Open Image ModalWhen you buy something online from a different country – often the case as many retail companies are global - "it can mean double trouble" says Wyckoff.
Staggeringly, the OECD has found that less than half of Internet users in some countries feel confident about buying products from another country online - yet many of these statistically must buy things from overseas. (credit:Alexandra Wyman/Invision/AP)