According to recent report published by the consumer credit reporting agency Experian, the online shopping fraud is skyrocketed after the COVID19 pandemic. Online purchasing is the most common scam type reported to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), accounting for 37 percent of complaints to the BBB's Scam Tracker in 2021 and 2022, and the riskiest, with 3 in 4 victims reporting a monetary loss.
It's getting harder to distinguish a fraudulent online store from a legitimate one thanks to the latest easy website builder platforms (like Shopify, WIX, etc.) a scammer can build a professional looking online store in just a few hours. Scammers use the latest technologies to set up fake retailer websites that look like genuine online retail stores. They may use sophisticated designs and layouts, possibly stolen logos, SSL connections and even real trusted payment methods like PayPal or Authorize.net. You might think that if you use PayPal, you are protected, even the store turns out to be bad one.