How to spot a scam: Beat the scammer !

It probably happened to us all, be scammed by a wise guy that has nothing else to do in his life. It is very frustrating and upsetting especially when nothing can be done to reverse it. 

The best way to fight the scammers is by identifying the scams and avoiding them upfront. 

I am about to share a few tips that will allow you to identify at least 90% of the scams on the current Internet market. 

1) If the deal is too good, it is most likely to be fake

You have been looking for that beautiful pair of shoes, you are so tempted to purchase it, but it costs around £200. You suddenly found an offer for £80... The price is really interesting but way too low for those branded shoes. It is better to give up now rather than being ripped off. 

2) Feedbacks

Always check sellers feedbacks when available. Make sure to always purchase your goods from a registered seller with a proven sales background or some kind of experience. 

New accounts are usually fake ones.

If no feedback are available, do not hesitate to chat in private with the person and ask questions, you will get a better feeling about that potential business partner. 

3) Photos

When it comes to social media, a website like upwork.com or even a online-dating, make sure to do your homework. Check the profile picture of the person, look for several different ones. 

If only one is displayed, it is already a bad sign. 

I would recommend to download the image in jpg onto your computer and launch a Google image search to see if this photo is assotiated with any other accounts or profiles. If it is, then the profile is 100% fake, the person probablyt stole the picture from someone else.

4) Payment methods

As I have mentioned in my previous article called "7 tips for sellers: Ebay and Amazon", PayPal is always my number one option when it comes to online payment. It is secure, buyer and seller protections are offered most of the time and you get more details about the person you are doing business with such as an email address or registered full name and even address.

Avoid at all costs Western Union and MoneyGram as most of the scammers use these platforms. Cash transactions should be only used for collection of items, if you purchase something online, do not send any cash, especially abroad.

5) Language skills

Bear in mind that most of the scams are written in a poor english. You might notice grammar or spelling mistakes which I believe make the seller lose a lot of credibility and raise the alarm in most of the cases. A broken english could be a sign of scammers, be cautious.

6) Upselling way too much

A merchant that will try and insist in you being his product too much is very likely to be a scammer. A good product should have reviews and be notorious by itself. Overselling and proning the advantages way too much could lead into scams. Harrassing customers has never been a popular way to sell your merchandise, just take the marketing calls example: They might call you everyday and you will keep having the same answer.

7) Report the scammers

One of the best ways of fighting against scammers is reporting them as soon as identified. 

All the major online platforms take these issues very seriously and will be more than happy to investigate your report and ban the user if necessary. Let's make this world scammer free and show them that honesty and good intentions always pay ! 

This is it for today, I would like to thank for reading my articles. Hit the like button if you enjoyed or share my post massively with your friends or family. I want my tips to help as many people as possible.

Take care. 

Joseph