How to spot a fake online shop: 7 red flags
Fake shops can look professional. Seven warning signs to check before you pay, from prices and company details to payment methods and copied terms.
A fake shop takes your money and sends nothing, or sends something else. Many look professional, with real product photos and a tidy checkout. The giveaway is usually in the details. One sign on its own proves little. Several together are a reason not to buy.
1. The price is far below everyone else's
Big discounts on popular brands, especially on items that are sold out elsewhere, are the most common lure. Compare the price with two or three shops you know. If one shop is much cheaper, ask yourself why.
2. You can't find out who runs the shop
A real business tells you its name, address and how to reach it. Look for a company name, a street address, an e-mail address and preferably a phone number. Check whether the company name and VAT number also appear in the terms and on the invoice page. If you can only find a contact form, be careful.
3. Only risky ways to pay
Be wary if the shop only accepts bank transfer, crypto or gift cards, or if the card and PayPal options disappear at checkout. Pay by credit card or another method where your bank or payment provider can help if something goes wrong.
4. Copied or missing terms
Read the returns page and the terms quickly. Another shop's name or domain in the text, an address in a different country than the one on the contact page, or no returns policy at all are clear warning signs.
5. No reputation outside the shop's own site
Search for the shop's name together with words like "reviews" or "scam". Reviews shown only on the shop's own site prove nothing. Look for reviews on independent platforms and read the negative ones, not just the score.
6. A brand-new domain with a lot of stock
A new website is not a scam by definition. But a domain that is a few weeks old, sells hundreds of branded products at low prices and has no history anywhere deserves extra care.
7. Pressure to buy now
Countdown timers, "only 2 left" and discounts that end in minutes are meant to stop you from checking. A real offer is still there in ten minutes.
Check a shop in a minute
Enter the web address on CheckShop. It reads the VAT number from the site and looks it up in the EU VIES register, checks whether Google reports malware or phishing, and checks the contact, returns, terms and privacy pages, the payment methods and the reviews. If Google reports the site as dangerous, the verdict is always red. Checking is free.
Already paid a shop you now doubt? Contact your bank or payment provider straight away, keep all messages and report the shop to the police and your national consumer authority.
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