SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Black Friday is 8 days away, but online sales are well underway. While retailers are trying to tempt you with early deals, scammers are also out in force.
The Better Business Bureau released a new study that shows a 125 percent increase in reported scams compared to last year. Scammers use our emotions, fear, urgency, intimidation even tugging at our heartstrings. Scammers are ruthless people who want one thing, money.
“They want you to give them every penny you have and then some,” said Jessie Schmidt with the Better Business Bureau in Sioux Falls.
Here are the top Red Flags that you could be dealing with an online scammer during shopping season:
-Items offered at a deep discount
-The deals are too good to be true
-Popular items are being sold by an unknown retailer
-The seller asks for payment through a payment app
-Unprofessional looking web pages
-Long shipping windows
Schmidt says there are simple things you can do to lower your risk of falling victim to a scammer.
“Buy with a credit card, as much as we want people to stay on a budget to keep themselves out of trouble this time of year. Put it on your credit card, you get the item turn around and pay for it. If there is any issues you have more protections with your credit card than you do with just your debit card because that is like handing over cash,” said Schmidt.
There is one scam in particular that people should be aware of
“Puppies, puppies, puppies, our research shows and the research of other experts shows that up to 80 percent of websites that have puppies for sale are fraudulent,” said Schmidt.
When it comes to shopping online, scammers will often try to create a sense of urgency, so the best thing you can do is slow down, double-check the details and trust your instinct.
