Everyone
loves
a
great
deal
when
they
shop
online.
Until
they
discover
it’s
a
rip-off.
Social
media
ads
for
vintage
wear.
Website
ads
for
home
entertainment
gear.
Search
ads
for
handbags.
Some
of
these
ads
aren’t
what
they
seem.
Instead
of
leading
you
to
deals
on
a
trustworthy
ecommerce
site,
the
ads
take
you
to
a
bogus
page
designed
to
steal
your
money
and
personal
info.
Unfortunately,
it
happens.
And
one
global
report
estimated
that
online
shoppers
lost
$41
billion
to
fraud
in
2022.
How
do
scammers
pull
it
off?
With
the
same
tools
that
legitimate
businesses
use.
Let’s
look
at
how
they
do
it
and
how
you
can
steer
clear
of
their
tricks.
Organized
cybercrime
in
your
cart
Many
of
today’s
scammers
work
in
organized
fashion.
They
oversee
large
cybercrime
operations
that
run
much
like
a
business.
They
employ
web
designers,
coders,
marketing
teams,
and
customer
call
centers
that
mimic
a
genuine
online
retailer.
Which
makes
sense.
The
more
they
can
look
and
act
like
the
real
thing,
the
more
likely
they
can
lure
victims
into
their
online
stores.
Smaller
bands
of
scammers
get
in
on
this
action
as
well.
Just
as
a
small
business
can
easily
create
an
online
store
with
any
number
of
off-the-shelf
services
and
solutions,
so
can
a
couple
of
scammers.
In
this
way,
scammers
large
and
small
can
readily
create
a
professional-looking
website,
create
effective
ads
to
drive
traffic
to
it,
and
collect
financial
information
from
there.
Yet,
some
scammers
don’t
steal
financial
information
outright.
They
might
indeed
ship
you
the
goods,
but
they
won’t
be
the
goods
you
ordered.
They’re
counterfeit.
And
it
might
be
part
of
a
large-scale
operation
that
exploits
child
workers.
Whether
they’re
out
to
steal
your
money
or
sell
you
knockoff
goods,
online
shopping
scams
tend
to
ramp
up
around
gift-giving
seasons.
They’ll
bait
shoppers
with
hard-to-find
items,
tout
steep
discounts
on
other
popular
items,
and
otherwise
play
into
the
rush
of
holiday
gift
buying.
Yet
they
crop
up
year-round
as
well.
Really,
any
time
you
shop
is
a
time
to
be
on
the
lookout
for
them.
Top
tips
for
safer
shopping
online
1.
Stick
with
known,
legitimate
retailers
online.
This
is
a
great
piece
of
advice
to
start
with.
Directly
typing
in
the
correct
address
for
online
stores
and
retailers
is
a
prime
way
to
avoid
scammers
online.
In
the
case
of
retailers
that
you
don’t
know
much
about,
the
U.S.
Better
Business
Bureau
(BBB)
asks
shoppers
to
do
their
research.
Ensure
that
the
retailer
has
a
good
reputation.
The
BBB
makes
that
easier
with
a
listing
of
retailers
you
can
search
by
typing
in
their
name.
Also
in
the
U.S.,
you
can
visit
the
website
of
your
state’s
Secretary
of
State.
There
you
can
search
for
the
business
in
question,
learn
when
it
was
founded,
if
it’s
still
active,
or
if
it
exists
at
all.
For
businesses
based
in
a
state
other
than
your
own,
you
can
visit
that
state’s
Secretary
of
State
website
for
information.
For
a
state-by-state
list
of
Secretaries
of
State,
you
can
visit
the
Secretary
of
State
Corporate
Search
page
here.
For
a
listing
of
businesses
with
international
locations,
organizations
like
S&P
Global
Ratings
and
the
Dun
and
Bradstreet
Corporation
can
provide
background
information.
2.
Research
new
sellers
for
their
history
and
reviews.
Never
heard
of
that
retailer
before?
See
when
they
launched
their
website.
A
relatively
new
site
might
be
a
sign
that
it’s
part
of
a
scam.
A
quick
visit
to
the
ICANN
(Internet
Corporation
for
Assigned
Names
and
Numbers)
website
can
show
you
certain
background
information
for
any
website
you
type
in.
Given
how
quickly
and
easily
scammers
can
register
and
launch
a
website,
this
kind
of
information
can
help
you
sniff
out
a
scam.
Of
course,
it
might
also
indicate
a
new
business
that’s
entirely
legitimate,
so
a
little
more
digging
is
called
for.
That’s
where
reviews
come
in.
Aside
from
the
resources
listed
above,
a
simple
web
search
of
“[company
name]
reviews”
or
“[company
name]
scam”
can
help
you
find
out
if
the
retailer
is
legit.
3.
Look
for
the
lock
icon
in
your
browser
when
you
shop.
Secure
websites
begin
their
addresses
with
“https,”
not
just
“http.”
That
extra
“s”
stands
for
“secure,”
which
means
that
it
uses
a
secure
protocol
for
transmitting
sensitive
info
like
passwords,
credit
card
numbers,
and
the
like
over
the
internet.
It
often
appears
as
a
little
padlock
icon
in
the
address
bar
of
your
browser,
so
double-check
for
that.
If
you
don’t
see
that
it’s
secure,
it’s
best
to
avoid
making
purchases
on
that
website.
4.
Pay
with
a
credit
card
instead
of
your
debit
card.
Credit
cards
offer
fraud
protections
that
debit
cards
don’t.
Another
key
difference:
when
fraud
occurs
with
a
debit
card,
you
fight
to
get
your
money
back—it’s
gone
straight
out
of
your
account.
With
a
credit
card,
the
issuer
fights
to
get
their
money
back.
They’re
the
ones
who
take
the
financial
hit.
Additionally,
in
the
U.S.,
the
Fair
Credit
Billing
Act
offers
the
public
protection
against
fraudulent
charges
on
credit
cards.
The
act
gives
citizens
the
power
to
dispute
charges
over
$50
for
goods
and
services
that
were
never
delivered
or
otherwise
billed
incorrectly.
Note
that
many
credit
card
companies
have
their
own
policies
that
improve
upon
the
Fair
Credit
Billing
Act
as
well.
However,
debit
cards
aren’t
afforded
the
same
protection
under
the
Act.
Avoid
using
a
debit
card
while
shopping
online
and
use
your
credit
card
instead.
5.
Use
two-factor
authentication
on
your
accounts.
Two-factor
authentication
is
an
extra
layer
of
defense
on
top
of
your
username
and
password.
It
adds
a
one-time-use
code
to
access
your
login
procedure,
typically
sent
to
your
smartphone
by
text
or
call.
Together,
that
makes
it
tougher
for
a
crook
to
hack
your
account.
If
any
of
your
accounts
support
two-factor
authentication,
the
few
extra
seconds
it
takes
to
set
up
is
more
than
worth
the
big
boost
in
protection
you’ll
get.
6.
Use
a
VPN
if
you’re
shopping
on
public
Wi-Fi.
Public
Wi-Fi
in
coffee
shops
and
other
public
locations
can
expose
your
private
surfing
to
prying
eyes
because
those
networks
are
open
to
all.
A
virtual
private
network
(VPN)
encrypts
your
browsing,
shopping,
and
other
internet
traffic.
That
makes
it
secure
from
bad
actors
who
try
to
intercept
your
data
on
public
Wi-Fi,
which
can
include
your
passwords
and
credit
card
numbers.
7.
Protect
your
devices
for
shopping.
A
complete
suite
of
online
protection
software
like
McAfee+
can
offer
layers
of
extra
security
while
you
shop.
It
includes
web
browser
protection
that
can
block
malicious
and
questionable
links
that
might
lead
you
down
the
road
to
malware
or
a
phishing
scam—
along
with
a
password
manager
that
can
create
and
securely
store
strong,
unique
passwords.
Avoiding
shopping
rip-offs
on
social
media
Social
media
has
made
it
easier
for
sellers
large
and
small
to
reach
customers
online.
It’s
made
it
easier
for
scammers
to
reach
victims
too.
If
you’re
on
social
media,
you’ve
certainly
seen
your
share
of
ads.
Some
are
from
companies
and
retailers
you
know
and
trust.
Yet
more
are
from
names
you’ve
likely
never
heard
of.
They
might
be
legitimate
businesses,
yet
they
might
be
fronts
for
a
convincing-looking
scam.
These
ads
end
up
on
social
media
the
same
way
ads
from
legitimate
businesses
do,
by
way
of
social
media
ad
platforms.
Social
media
companies
created
these
platforms
so
advertisers
can
reach
millions
of
individual
users
based
upon
their
age
group,
hobbies
and
interests,
past
purchases,
and
so
on.
For
example,
a
scammer
might
target
younger
shoppers
with
an
interest
in
retro
fashion.
From
there,
the
scammer
can
narrow
that
down
to
target
people
who
live
in
metropolitan
areas
who
like
1980s
memorabilia.
The
scammers
then
create
an
ad
that
takes
that
audience
to
a
phony
website
loaded
with
bogus
t-shirts,
coats,
and
bags.
All
of
it
costs
relatively
little.
A
small
ad
budget
of
a
few
hundred
dollars
can
give
scammers
exposure
to
millions
of
potential
victims.
The
best
way
to
avoid
getting
stung
by
these
sites
is
to
do
your
homework.
Seek
out
the
company’s
track
record.
Look
for
reviews.
And
if
you’re
unsure,
take
a
pass.
Don’t
shop
with
that
company.
Buyer
be
wary
…
Shopping
scams
can
look
and
feel
rather
sophisticated
today.
With
a
host
of
low-cost
and
easy-to-use
tools
for
publishing
and
advertising
online,
scammers
of
all
sizes
can
create
bogus
shopping
experiences
that
look
convincing.
So
buyers
be
wary.
Before
you
click
or
tap
on
that
ad,
do
some
research.
Determine
if
the
company
is
legitimate,
if
it’s
had
complaints
waged
against
it,
and
how
those
complaints
were
resolved.
And
always
use
your
credit
card.
It
offers
the
best
consumer
protections
you
have
in
the
event
you
do
end
up
getting
scammed.
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