According to the reputable Pew Research organization, 93% of American adults use the internet. While the majority of these “techies” have been on-line for many years, over 10 million adults started logging on less than 3 years ago. Sadly, many of these recent “adopters” were not prepared for the onslaught of cyber scams targeting them and other users. In reality, neither are veteran users of the internet Here are a few Cyber Fraud 101 tips for knowing if the website you are visiting is legitimate.
The top of the tip list is to examine the URL (address line) for the web page. Criminals are more than capable when it comes to creating cloned web sites; copying a legitimate webpage and inserting links and data entry points. These allow collection of your information such as account IDs, passwords, and credit card numbers. Before providing anything, examine the URL. Do you recognize the name of the vendor? If not, conduct a browser search of the name with the word “scam” or review such as “Patagonia scam.” The absence of reviews can also ring a warning bell.
Does the URL include the name of a website hosting company such as GoDaddy, Weebly, Google? Scammers will create their imposter website using a free, generic hosting service. Company websites will display the name of the business or organization followed immediately by the “Top Level” domain (.com, .org, .net). Anything appearing between the two makes the site a scam suspect.
Next, is something “Too Good To Be True.” Criminals attempt to attract their victims by posting sale items with unrealistically discounted prices. Often, these offers appear in social media or email and lead you to the fraudulent website. Luckily, the internet makes comparative shopping a breeze. Conduct a quick, independent search to see if the offer you are considering is not real.
Beware of product or service endorsements. I conducted my own non-scientific study of endorsees by examining several provided via email or included on webpages. I uncovered duplicate endorsements for several items by the same people for multiple products. Honest endorsements or reviews can be valuable so seek them out. Reviews by Consumer Reports, Good Housekeeping, TrustPilot, and the Better Business Bureau can provide guidance (I rely on TripAdvisor when booking travel).
Does the vendor or product have a social media presence. Legitimate companies use social media to promote brand name and product recognition. These symbols and others displayed on a website can provide a degree of authentication for the product or service. Click on them to see what is promoted. Links that are inactive can be a sign of an imposter.
Consider the age of the website or domain. While new companies and websites appear almost daily and are legitimate, their sudden appearance can also be indicative of a scam. As a potential victim, checking the age of a website can provide some insight and serve as an alert to a possible scam. In the world of cyber fraud, detection and site-disabling are constant threats as are the posting of negative reviews. For the criminal, recreating a fraudulent on-line site is only a slightly annoying task. Reestablishing a disabled website with a different host takes only a matter of minutes.
Registration is necessary for a website to be publicly available. This involves two distinct steps after a webpage or website is created: hosting and registration. The hosting step is accomplished through a business that offers a hosting service such as WIX, Weebly, or GoDaddy, for a small fee. Registration is conducted by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Anyone can find details about public websites at www.icann.org or https://whois.domaintools.com. After opening this site, enter the address of the website you are visiting. The screen will now display two critical pieces of information: the name of the site registrar and the age of the website. Reconsider doing business if the site was recently created. If you believe the site is fraudulent, contact the registrar to give notice of the scam.
Elliott Greenblott is a retired educator and coordinator of the AARP Vermont Fraud Watch Network. He hosts a CATV program, Mr. Scammer, distributed by GNAT-TV in Sunderland, VT – www.gnat-tv.org
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