How to Avoid Fake Online Stores: 12 Checks Before You Enter Your Card Details
Scam stores copy real product photos, real brand names and real-looking reviews. They are harder to spot than they used to be, but they still fail a few simple tests.
Counterfeit storefronts have become professional. They use the same site builders as legitimate brands, lift product photography from real catalogues, and run paid ads that place them next to the genuine article. Most victims are not careless; they simply did not know what to check. Here is our list, roughly in the order we run it.
Before you click the ad
- Check the domain, not the display name. Ads show a brand name; the destination URL shows the truth. Hyphens, extra words and unusual endings (“brand-outlet-store.shop”) are red flags.
- Is the discount plausible? 80% off current-season stock from a premium brand is not a sale, it is bait.
On the site
- Look for a physical address and a working phone number on the contact page. Then search the address. Fake stores reuse residential addresses or none at all.
- Read the About page critically. Generic copy (“we are passionate about bringing you the best products”) with no names, dates or history is a warning sign.
- Check the returns policy. Scam stores often have one – copied from elsewhere, with another brand’s name still in it.
- Payment methods. Legitimate stores accept cards and usually a wallet service. Bank transfer only, or crypto only, is an immediate stop.
- Reverse-image-search a product photo. If it appears on the real brand’s site or a dozen other stores, you are not looking at the manufacturer.
- Reviews. All five stars, all posted in the same week, all written in the same voice – these are generated.
Off the site
- Search the store name plus “scam” or “reviews”. Victims post quickly.
- Check the domain age. Public lookup tools show when a domain was registered. A “trusted since 2008” store on a domain registered last month is lying.
- Look for the brand’s official retailer list. Many manufacturers publish authorised sellers.
- Check whether a coupon site you trust lists them. We only create a brand page after confirming a company exists, trades under that name and fulfils orders. Absence is not proof of a scam, but presence is a reasonable signal.
If you have already paid
Contact your card issuer immediately to dispute the transaction, change any password you reused, and report the site to your national consumer protection body and to the ad platform that showed it to you. Acting within the first few days greatly improves the chance of a refund.