The introduction of the Internet to the world has significantly made retail shopping seamless and more straightforward. While enjoying the comfort of their homes, shoppers can browse through an online store’s product catalog, add products to their cart on the website, and check out.
Then again, more significant challenges came along with convenience and simplicity. One of these challenges is security. There are countless cases of online shopping scams, with a considerable part of these scams resulting in substantial financial losses.
As the World Wide Web has become a household name when it comes to consuming content, trading, and even gossiping, people can’t stop buying online stuff, despite the high risk of getting ripped off by online scammers. People also try shopping from USA through these online shops regardless of the risk of fraud.
To prevent getting ripped off by fraudsters and scammers, here are some simple security tips you should consider.
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Check if the Site is Secured
Especially for those shopping from the USA via online retail stores, it’s essential to check the website’s security. All you have to do is to move the cursor to the address bar and check if the site is an HTTPS or HTTP.
HTTPS websites mean that any information a user enters into the website is automatically encrypted and made safe from eavesdropping and interception by malicious parties. Sadly, many phishing sites can look safe because they’re using HTTPS. So, to double-check the site’s safety, look for the company name in the URL. This can help the user check if the website is indeed operated by a legitimate company or by an impostor. Then again, there’s no guarantee that if it’s an HTTPS site with the company name in the URL, that it’s completely legit. In case of doubt, trust your gut feeling. And if something looks and feels off, walk away.
Check if the Site is Reliable
No one would want to do business with a fraudster or a website that’s operated by cyber criminals, hackers, and bogus sellers. Buyers would always want to deal with reliable retail sites. So, the critical question here is, how can you determine if a particular site is secure?
The answer is by reviewing it. Before buying anything from any online store, exercise due diligence by running a thorough background check.Google the store and see if there is positive feedback about it. Apart from that, you can also look for the store’s social media pages and read ratings from real customers.
While there are various review websites, the best place to start checking is the Business Bureau. Remember to answer these questions.
- Do your friends purchase from this website?
- What was the experience of the people who purchased from the said site?
- Were those bad or good experiences?
Focus on these critical questions and avoid falling into the trap of scammers and bogus sellers.
Weigh If The Offer Or Price Is Just Too Good To Be True
Most bogus online stores offer prices that are just too good to be considered valid. To know if the offer is good, check if they have events that warrant a special sale or promo. Is it their anniversary? If it’s a regular business day and the price is too good to turn down, trust your gut again, walk away.
Keep this simple checklist in mind the next time you shop online. If ever you’re ready to purchase, and you’re worried about shipping options, contact companies like Ship7 and save yourself from the hassle of shipping your purchased goods from the US to the UK at high rates.
