Love Online Shopping : Beware Of SCAMS

  

Living in the revolutionary era of the internet, we have come across a world where buying and selling of necessary goods to luxurious items is just one click away. Online purchasing was the most common scam type reported to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) in 2019, representing nearly 1 in 4 complaints, and the one that most often led to a financial loss, according to the BBB's annual "Scam Tracker Risk Report.” There are multiple number of tricks like :-

FAKE WEBSITES / WEBSTORES 

Fake websites are designed identical to that of the reputed company's sites  like their logo, page, URL address etc. making it difficult for you to notice. By entering your personal information your bank account can be hacked and your money can be drained. According to a report, there is an increment  of  475% in website scams .

There are many online shopping sites who use fake reviews technique.Fake spot report says 1/3rd of the reviews on sites like Walmart, Amazon, Flipkart etc. are fake. Usually, sellers pay  testers a good amount  to post 4-5 stars ratings so as to become verified purchases  on online sites tricking you into buying inferior quality products & making themselves good profit.  

 #  How to spot fake reviews :

Language - If reviews are short  and  without details ( like good product / great company) then good chances of being fake. 

Look for more varied reviews, not everyone has same experience . 

Use sites like Fake spot etc. 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.androidauthority.com/amazon-fake-reviews-1088467/amp/

WARNING SIGNS

1. Bargain -basement prices. Internet security firm Norton says to be on guard if discounts exceed 55 percent.

2.Shoddy website design or sloppy English. Real retailers take great care with their online presentation.

3.Limited or suspicious contact options — for example, they only have 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. ,.in

Don’t ignore such things . React to it and file a complaint, yes, a lot of people just let go off things, don't react to it and end up being victimised several times. You can contact for help  : 

  1.Indian Consumer Complaints Forum

  2. Toll free no. - 1800114000 or 14004

 3 . SMS - 8130009809

  4. Website - https://https://consumerhelpline.gov.in/ 

   

Conclusion :  

There are plenty of fraudsters waiting for your one small mistake and exhausting your bank balance, do make sure to think twice before hitting the " Buy Now" button. With proper safety measures and right information you can prevent yourself from falling prey to such scams. 

#stay safe # stay smart # stay satark