Police have issued an urgent warning to shoppers following a surge in online fraud cases.
Officers say they have seen an increase in the number of people being tricked into paying for goods and services that do not exist. More than 100 people are reported to have fallen victim to online shopping fraud this week alone, with the average loss per victim being £110.
The average age of those affected is between 30 and 35. The losses impacted users of a number of second-hand shopping pages and sites on Facebook, Vinted, eBay and Gumtree.
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Victims are lured by the promise of a significant price drop on recommended retail price items or rare and hard to find goods that can only be found on one online shop, police have warned.
The items are often advertised via social media, and criminals typically ask for money to be sent directly from victims' accounts to another account through a bank transfer. While most online sellers are legitimate, officers say fraudsters use online shopping as it can easily hide their identity.
Officers from GMP’s Economic Crime Unit have now offered a number of tips to shoppers to ensure they do not fall foul to dodgy online deals.
Sergeant Stacey Shannon, the unit's prevention and protection lead, said: “Our team continues to work hard to prevent fraud in order to keep our community safe.
“We are targeting criminals, but, we need your help. We need the public to help us to help you by arming yourself with the prevention advice below to keep yourself and your money safe from criminals.”
Top tips to keeping safe from online shopping scams
- Make sure you do some background research into what price other sites and sellers are listing the same items of a similar condition. As the age old saying goes, if an offer seems too good to be true, it usually is.
- Check the seller or buyer’s feedback from customers – and be wary of a large volume of reviews in a short space of time that sound the same. This can be an indication of a fake review.
- Use a recommended payment site instead of bank transfer and check your bank statements regularly to ensure that no money has come out that you are unaware of. Payments via bank transfer offer you no protection if you become a victim of fraud.
- Check that the website you are buying from is genuine. This can be done by typing in the web address on a search engine. Fake addresses can sometimes only be one or two incorrect characters and can easily look the same on first glance.
- Don’t click on a link in an unexpected email or text. The volume of online shopping related phishing emails increases significantly during the holiday period. Remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.
- Use a strong, separate password for your email account. Criminals can use your email to access other online accounts, such as those you use for online shopping
Can you spot the signs of online fraud?
You’ve bought goods from an online seller that are either late in arriving or don’t arrive at all or that don’t match the original description.
You’ve given identity details or personal financial information to an online seller who has used them in criminal ways as the popularity of internet shopping and online auctions grows, so the number of complaints about transactions is increasing.
Some of the most common complaints involve:
- Buyers receiving goods late, or not at all
- Sellers not receiving payment
- Buyers receiving goods that are either less valuable than those advertised or significantly different from the original description
- Failure to disclose relevant information about a product or the terms of sale
Reporting fraud
If you have been affected by online shopping fraud, report it to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or visiting www.actionfraud.police.uk You can access many of the services provided by Greater Manchester Police online at gmp.police.uk. For emergencies only call 999, or 101 if it’s less urgent.
