Online Shopping Scams

You need not forgo the ease and endless selection of online shopping, but take precautions to make sure you get what you pay for.

Warning signs

• Bargain-basement prices. Internet security firm Norton says to be on guard if discounts exceed 55 percent.
• Shoddy website design or sloppy English. Real retailers take great care with their online presentation.
• Limited or suspicious contact options — for example, there's only a fill-in contact form, or the customer service email is a Yahoo or Gmail account, not a corporate one.
• URLs with extraneous words or characters (most stores use only their brand name in web addresses) or unusual domains — for example, .bargain, .app or a foreign domain instead of .com or .net.
• Sites that ask you to download software or enter personal information to access coupons or discount codes.
• Sellers who demand payment by wire transfer, money order or gift card. They are scammers.

How to protect yourself

• Use trusted sites rather than shopping with a search engine. Scammers can game search results to lead you astray.
• Comparison shop. Check prices from multiple retailers to help determine if a deal you’ve seen really is too good to be true.
• Research an unfamiliar product or brand. Search for its name with terms such as “scam” or “complaint,” and look for reviews.
• Check that phone numbers and addresses on store sites are genuine, so you can contact the seller in case of problems.
• Carefully read delivery, exchange, refund and privacy policies. If they are vague or nonexistent, take your business elsewhere.
• Look twice at URLs and app names. Misplaced or transposed letters are a scam giveaway but easy to miss.
• Pay by credit card. Liability for fraudulent charges on credit cards is generally limited to $50, and some providers offer 100 percent purchase protection. Paying by debit card does not off offer such safeguards.
• Don’t assume a retail website is safe because it is encrypted. Many scam sites use encryption, indicated by a padlock icon or “https://” in front of the URL, to provide a false sense of security. Use other means, including those listed above, to confirm if a site is legit.
  
• Don’t provide more information than a retailer needs. That should be only your billing information and the shipping address.
• Check that the site is well established, security software maker Norton recommends. Look for a copyright date, and use the WHOIS lookup service to see when a domain was created.
  

More Resources

• If you’ve been victimized by an online retail scam, file a report with the Federal Trade Commission and the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center. The FTC website has advice on safe online shopping.
• File a complaint with your state’s attorney general and consumer protection agency.