14 Ways to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Online stores have become a very popular form of sale, and more people are using their services. Unfortunately, the Internet scammers know about this and are ready to deceive and deprive you of money at any time. How can it be?

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money


Foreign IP address 

Foreign IP address

No, this does not mean that sites with a foreign IP address (a unique set of numbers that are used to identify an individual device that connects to the Internet) are always fraudulent, but transactions that occur with foreign Internet protocol addresses (IP ) are on the average seven times less safe.

The domain name looks strange.

The domain name looks strange.

It is recommended that you take a close look at the domain name of the site to see if it really is what it seems, or whether it is slightly (or even much) different from what you expected to see. For example, if you want to buy Pandora jewelry, there is a possibility that you will see the address of Pandorapick.com, from which fake jewelry is sold under the guise of the original products of this manufacturer.

You see in the HTTP address, not HTTPS 

You see in the HTTP address, not HTTPS

Before you make a purchase in an online store, make sure that its address starts with HTTPS, not with HTTP. This very important letter S means secure, which translates as "safe". This means that all communications between your browser and this site are encrypted, that is exactly what they should be to protect your personal information.

The site asks for your financial data when you view it 

The site asks for your financial data when you view it

If you receive an email or see a pop-up window asking you to provide your financial information, do not answer and do not click on the links. If something like this happens, immediately close the browser window. Law-abiding companies will never ask for your information in this way. Go to the contact page, check the owner's name and look for more information about the site on the Internet.

Word-markers 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

When you decide whether to buy something on the Internet, make sure that you read the product description carefully from the seller, in particular what is written in small print. Such words as "restored", "vintage" or "liquidation" can mean that the product is not in the best condition.

It looks too good to be true 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Everyone knows the old saying: if something looks too good to be true, it really is. You need to be extremely careful with such products and offers. If the price of the product you want to buy is much lower than the prices you saw in other online stores, this may be a sign that you want to be deceived, and the product will prove to be a fake.

Missing refund policy 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

If the return policy is inaccurate, vague or confusing, you should close the window instantly. If you are unsatisfied with the goods can not return the product that you buy and get back its full value, you should refuse such a purchase.

Missing contact information 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Everyone who has a computer and Internet access can create his online store with almost any name and any name, and that's why it's very important to check the physical address of the seller on the web and his phone number in case you have any problems questions or problems. Start by opening the contact page. If it does not exist, this should already serve as a warning.

Strange or missing privacy policy 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Although it is worth noting that you still have to part with the confidentiality partially, when you just enter the Internet, you also need to understand which personal information the particular site that you are using collects in the process. Also, you have the right to know why and how this site will use the information received. If you can not find a privacy policy (or can not figure it out), you should look for another online store.

Strange Internet search results 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

If you doubt the integrity of a particular site, try searching it in Google. Check the site itself and its owner and take a look at what the results of the search will be. You can also look at the "Transparency Report" to see the security rating of each site.

Bad or pointless reviews 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Look for reviews about the site and its owner to find out what other people have told about it. Did you see that the reviews are bad? That's all you need to know, is not it? Also, you should pay attention to reviews that do not make sense, for example, on the feedback about the bulb, when you want to buy charging for the phone. If you see something like this, this should be a warning for you.

Lack of payment by card 

This point may seem obvious if you are a person who constantly purchases online using a card. If you pay by card, this means that your transaction is protected by the policy of the bank that issued the card, and you can challenge the transactions and temporarily block the payment until the seller's integrity is checked. If you send cash, you will not be so protected.

Do not share everything in a row 

How to recognize a fake online store and not lose your money

Problems can not only be caused by the sites you are visiting. If you post too much on social networks, you can give out exactly the information that online scammers need to access your card (for example, your mother's maiden name). You will also be more vulnerable to online fraud if you do not use multifactor authentication when you access sites from a mobile device.

If you suspect fraud 

If you suspect online fraud, you should immediately call the bank and notify employees about it. You can block your card, change your password or temporarily freeze your account. If you notice that your card number was stolen, close your account and open a new one. You should also contact the relevant law enforcement authorities to inform them of the situation.

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