Marketplaces have become the main target of fraudsters because they have high turnover and a large audience. Links to fake resources are distributed primarily through instant messengers. Vitaly Mayakov, head of Atiko’s customer support department, told socialbites.ca.
According to the expert, there are several common types of fraud in the market. One of these is phone fraud.
“Scammers copy the product card, make a note on it with a text stating that you must contact the seller directly via WhatsApp to get a discount, and offer it for sale. Then the plan is simple: you call this number, a “consultant” answers you, you pay for the goods and receive nothing. “Note that the platform prohibits the transfer of communication between the seller and the customer to instant messaging programs,” he said.
Another type of fraud is fake marketplace sites.
“By going to the fake website of the same Wildberries or Ozon and registering your bank card there, you doom it to be “ruined” by fraudsters. After all, this is precisely why sites have recently been created that are almost indistinguishable from the originals. Be very careful, check the spelling of the site in the search bar – the domain name should completely coincide with the official one. This type of fraudulent activity is called “phishing”. The basis for this is a fake sale; the user enters the card details on the fraudsters’ website and then writes the money,” added the expert.
An unusual method of fraud is an offer to return the money.
“Scammers are trying to gain the customer’s trust. For example, on the official market there is a store that cancels a prepaid order and returns the money, but offers to choose a different delivery method, and to do this you must follow the link. So you move from a real site to a fake site, and there the customer loses data and money,” said Mayakov.
There are several simple ways to check a site.
“We are looking at the https protocol. Scammers often use http without S. This is very short. https is an SSL or Secure Sockets Layer encryption protocol. This is a service that requires money. Since fake sites are constantly banned, scammers on the Internet try to do this with minimal effort. Additionally, since large organizations install a paid certificate, there should be a padlock icon in the search bar confirming encryption. Sometimes they can take advantage of a free deal, so look for the certificate that should identify the owner registered in the legal territory of Russia,” he advised.
It would be a good idea to check the details, TIN, legal entity of the site and seller.
“We look at the details – the information in the contact section on the website. If there is no such section, everything is clear: the site is suspicious, we do not use it. If there is, we check it. “Look at the information about this company, its turnover, lawsuits,” concluded the expert.
Previously former official loss 19.8 million rubles after scammers called.