Online Shopping Scam

Online shopping scams are not new. They are actually old-school tricks, wherein scammers – pretending to be legitimate online sellers — use either a fake website or a fake ad on a genuine retailer site to trap customers. Online shopping is loved by many people. The main reason why a lot of people prefer online shopping is because of convenience, offers, and discounts. With the help of online shopping, you can purchase a wide variety of products at just a click of a button. In the case of online shopping, there are no headaches of going to the shop personally and standing in a long queue to bill the product. You can save a lot of money by shopping online as there are a lot of discounts and offers.

During festive seasons and any other special occasions, many online shopping portals offer discounts and cashback. A lot of people make purchases during this season to avail these discounts. If you are one among them, be careful while shopping online during this festive season as discount scams are on the rise. The main target of these scams is unsavvy consumers who are not very experienced in online shopping. Fraudsters send out emails and messages to customers explaining the discounts. These are done with the intention of attracting them. When they click on the link, they will be directed to websites where they will be asked to provide personal information like name, phone number, and credit card information. If this information is provided by the customers, it will be used to carry out fraudulent transactions.

A newer version of online shopping scams involves the use of social media platforms to set up fake online stores. They open the store for a short time, often selling fake branded clothing or jewelry. After making a number of sales, the stores disappear. They also use social media to advertise their fake website, so do not trust a site just because you have seen it advertised or shared on social media. The best way to detect a fake trader or social media online shopping scam is to search for reviews before purchasing. 

Check if the website or social media page has a refund or returns policy and that their policies sound fair. Better online shopping and auction sites have detailed complaint or dispute handling processes in case something goes wrong.

When using retail websites, find out exactly who you are dealing with. If it is an Australian company, you are in a much better position to sort out the problem if something goes wrong.

When making online payments, only pay for items using a secure payment service—look for a URL starting with ‘HTTPS and a closed padlock symbol, or a payment provider such as PayPal. Think twice before using virtual currencies such as bitcoin—they do not have the same protections as other transaction methods so you can’t get your money back once you send it.

Avoid any arrangement with a stranger that asks for up-front payment via money order, wire transfer, international funds transfer, pre-loaded card or electronic currency, like Bitcoin. It is rare to recover money sent this way. Never send money or give credit card or online account details to anyone you don’t know or trust.