Rule out a fake shop in two minutes
Three checks that take two minutes and rule out nearly every fake shop before your card comes out.
An ad appears: a well-known brand of hiking boots, $29 instead of $145, final day. A store like that is built to take a payment, then close before the complaints arrive.
Key points
- A fake store is built to take a payment, not to sell anything
- Bank transfer only, no street address and an 80 percent discount are the reliable signs
- Reviews on the store’s own page and good photographs prove nothing
What to remember
- How old is the address, who is the company, and can it be found elsewhere.
- Leave the page you were sent to, and arrive by your own route.
Try this
Find the street address and telephone number on a store you already trust — right at the bottom of the page, where every real one puts them. Then look for them on a store you do not know. If a store you were about to buy from has neither, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Practice: Rule out a fake shop in two minutes. Your first lesson is free, with no account or card; the rest are part of a Lantern plan. Interactive lessons require JavaScript.