In this post, yet another one in the series devoted to safe online shopping, we will take a closer look at fake stores, which fraudsters use to swindle funds from e-buyers. Here are a few tips that will help you recognise a dishonest website. We will also remind you how to verify the store’s credibility.
There are a few recurring patterns that fraudsters use to entice customers to use their ‘offer’. If you spot them, inspect the website closely before you decide to shop.
Proceed with caution if you come cross an online store which offers:
- exceptionally good prices (for example, even twice as low) compared to the market prices;
- a very broad range of products (for example, in totally unrelated product categories);
- or – the opposite – single items of top brand products;
- products which are sold out elsewhere (for example, tickets to concerts, cultural events);
- discounts on the majority of their products;
- products in all variants and sizes available on stock.
Additionally, pay attention to the following:
- payment upon delivery is not possible
- free delivery, irrespective of the value of the cart.
An attractive offer is a distinguishing feature that fictitious online stores try to attract unaware customers. It is common knowledge that products and services sold online are often cheaper than those offered in brick-and-mortar stores, but the price differences are relatively small. When shopping, it is worth turning off your emotions and carefully considering the offer. If it seems too attractive, check the credibility of the store or give up the purchase.
How to find out if an online store is genuine?
- Check the opinions about the store on the Internet. They are widely available, for example, on Google. Also on marketplace sales platforms, customers have the opportunity to post their ratings and opinions. It is worth reading them before the first purchase from a given seller.
- Check how long the company has been operating on the market. You can do this with the tool: Baza Internetowa Regon (available in Polish language only).
- Check if there are contact details on the store's website. The footer of the page or the "About us" section should include: company name, address, email, telephone number. Evaluate whether they are reliable (e.g. whether the phone number starts with the Polish area code +48).
- Enter the address of the registered office in Google Maps. This way you will confirm whether the indicated address exists. You can check through Street View what the neighborhood looks like, whether a store sign is visible, etc.
Remember: If you find negative or no reviews, the offer seems "too good to be true", the company is new and has no real contact details - DO NOT BUY!
