Marketing Scams – Don’t Get Caught Out
Ever been tempted by an ad with low prices… but when you visit the site, things don’t look right?
James Walker from Rightly and Louise Baxter from the National Trading Standards Scams Team explain how to take control, know how to spot a scam and what to do about it.
Have you been on a social media platform, seen ads and clicked on them to find a website that you’re not sure about? Have you ended up making a purchase and it never turns up? You may have experienced a scam website.
Ads on platforms – even if you trust a platform – should always be treated with suspicion.
So how do you spot a scam advert?
The domain name should align with the brand name. This means the ad’s company name will normally be the same or similar to the brand. On social media you will often see ads for clothing brands having 24-hour discount sales and the website URL is nothing like the brand.
The price is too good to be true. The same ads often have prices that are amazingly cheap – for instance, a £90 jacket on sale for £5. The ads are aimed at making you feel a need to move quickly. Scams are all about you not having time to think before you act.
Pic: Shutterstock
The reviews are all “too good” or have poor English. Often, new sites will not have any ratings on a review site. Or maybe they have had lots of reviews (all amazing) very recently.
Five stars… says who? The other telltale sign of a fake website is when they advertise fake review scores which do not actually appear on the review site.
The final check is to look at the terms and conditions for the website. All companies need to put in their registered name and registered address in their terms and conditions. From this you can work out where the company is based. Is this where you thought they were?
We would recommend only purchasing from a website that is based in the UK or Europe as you have the best legal rights for returning goods that you purchased.
Scambusters Mailbag
How do I report a scam call?
Scambusters say: In England, Wales or Northern Ireland, visit www.actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, report to Police Scotland by calling 101.
There is a new quick service, which is to put the phone down and immediately call 159.
I think I may have fallen for an advertising scam. What do I do now?
Scambusters say: If you are on the website and have not made a purchase, then close the website immediately. That is the best case scenario.
If you have made the purchase already, then speak to your bank. Ask them to consider a refund. There is a specific code set up for these cases, so the bank should consider all the facts you give them.
Lastly, we would also ask you to report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via actionfraud.police.uk or contact the Scottish Police on 101.
Pic: Shutterstock
Tip of the week
If you are receiving unwanted text messages or WhatsApp messages, you can hide alerts or mark as spam on your phone. Do this by swiping sideways on the text message from the main WhatsApp menu, and options including “block” will appear. This means you will not receive the messages any more, with your phone or WhatsApp suppressing the messages.
If you have received a text you think is a scam, then you can
- forward it to 7726 or
- take a screenshot and send it to report@phishing.gov.uk.
If you are receiving lots of unwanted phone calls or text messages you can also consider removing your details from data brokers. You have a right to object to processing of your data. You can learn more about this on Rightly to stop the sharing of your data exposing you to scams.
And don’t forget, you can take a free training course on how to fight back against scams! Knowledge is power. Find out more on friendsagainstscams.org.uk.
Find lots more savvy tips and money saving advice every week in My Weekly magazine. £1.75 from newsagents and supermarkets, or subscribe for a great saving.
