BBB offers guidance on avoiding online scams ahead of holiday shopping
HOUSTON - Black Friday and Cyber Monday are in the books, but millions of people are still spending and looking for gifts for the holidays.
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The Better Business Bureau is now warning people, especially those who shop online, to beware of holiday shopping scams. BBB recommendations for researching online retail sellers:
- Check BBB.org for BBB Business Profiles and consumer reviews.
- Search for online reviews.
- Look at Scamadviser.com to learn how long a website has been in operation. A recently created website may be a red flag.
- Review the website's URL for misspellings or other errors.
- Examine the URL with Google's Transparency Report tool.
- Use a map app to verify the business's address.
- Remember the adage: If a price is too good to be true, it probably is.
- Make sure you can pay by credit card, which offers the most protection against loss.
- Treat a social media or email ad with suspicion until you have investigated the company behind it.