Online shopping scams pop up during holiday season

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Better Business Bureau said most holiday shoppers are planning to buy at least half of their gifts online this year, and cyber criminals are trying to take advantage.

The National Retail Federation said online shopping is expected to increase between 7%-9% this year from 2022, up to more than $270 billion. BBB Regional Director Khesha Duncan said online shopping scams tend to pop up more often around the holiday shopping season, so it's important to make sure people are dealing with a verified retailer.

Ways to do this, according to Duncan, include:

• Making sure the website begins with https. If a site does not have the "s" at the end, it may not be secure.
• Checking customer reviews.
• Checking that the business is verified with the BBB.
• Doing research before making a purchase.

"You can be anxious because you're excited. 'Oh, I found that item!'" Duncan said. "Don't click on anything, don't make a purchase, don't give out your credit card number or input anything until you're comfortable and you know for sure you've checked as extensively as possible to make sure that you're actually purchasing from who you wanted to purchase from."

The BBB warns to be wary of making quick purchases on social media, as well. Chief Technology Expert at Integral Burton Kelso said problems occur when criminals set up bogus sites for small or unknown companies.

He said a red flag should be if someone is asked for credit card information before upfront, before making a purchase.

"Most of these companies are just a Google search away," Kelso said. "So, rather than just concentrate on the deal, you need to concentrate on not getting tricked by a variety of scams that are on the internet."

Both experts warn the same goes for other retail platforms such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace and even Amazon and eBay.

"There may be merchants there that look legitimate, but may trick you into purchasing products that are nonexistent," Kelso said. "So, if you are a bargain hunter and you are willing to do the research, you definitely need to make sure that you double check and ensure that the retailer that you're dealing with is a legitimate one and not a cyber criminal."

Kelso said common scams that occur this time of year include notifications that an item is "out of stock" but can be bought at another retailer, there is a problem with an item that was ordered, someone needs to get a refund on a product and the all-too-popular "there is a problem with delivery of a package."

Duncan said if someone receives a text or email that a package can't be delivered and are unsure if it is a scam, they should not click the link provided, but instead go directly to the retailer where an item was purchased and use that direct tracking link.

Duncan said phishing scams increase during the holidays, and warns to really be careful with any unsolicited emails, texts or calls.

"If you see misspellings in the email, grammatical errors, things just don't look quite right, use your instinct and your intuition and don't click on anything," Duncan said. "Just delete that email."

She said people should pay with a credit card online to have a record of purchase and a chance of recouping any money that was lost. She warns people to be aware if they're being asked to pay via wire transfer or gift card. Kelso added people should take screenshots of all transactions.

If someone is scammed, they should contact local authorities, notify their bank or credit card company, attempt to contact the retailer, and report the scam to the BBB or the FTC.