How to Spot and Avoid Online Shopping Scams: A Practical Guide Based on Official Advice

Online shopping has become second nature for most of us. A few clicks and a package arrives at your door within days. But that convenience also attracts scammers who are constantly refining their tactics. The good news is that federal agencies—including the VA, the Federal Trade Commission, and the FBI—regularly publish clear guidance on how to recognize and avoid these scams. This article pulls together their latest advice, with special attention to veterans and military families, though the tips apply to everyone.

What’s happening

In January 2026, VA News published an article titled “Watch out for scams and stay safe while online shopping,” reminding readers that fraudsters don’t take holidays. The piece builds on earlier seasonal guidance from late 2024 about navigating holiday shopping risks. Around the same time, the FBI released its 2024 Internet Crime Report, which shows that online shopping scams continue to account for significant financial losses—hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The FTC also maintains up-to-date consumer advice on spotting fake websites, phishing emails, and too-good-to-be-true deals.

These aren’t isolated warnings. The patterns scammers use remain consistent: impersonate a legitimate retailer, create a sense of urgency, and ask for payment in hard-to-trace forms like gift cards or wire transfers.

Why it matters

Anyone can fall for a well-crafted scam, but veterans and military families may be targeted more aggressively. Scammers know that military benefits and pensions can provide a steady income, and they often use fake charity appeals or counterfeit VA-related services. Moreover, the emotional toll of losing money to fraud goes beyond the dollar amount—it erodes trust in online systems many now rely on for everything from groceries to medical supplies.

The FBI’s report underscores that older adults and those less familiar with digital security are disproportionately affected. But the risk isn’t confined to one demographic. Even tech-savvy shoppers can be fooled by a convincing phishing email that mimics a retailer they use regularly. The key is knowing what to look for before you click “buy” or share any personal information.

What you can do

The following steps come directly from VA, FTC, and FBI guidance. They are not exhaustive, but they cover the most common attack vectors.

Recognize the classic signs of a scam. Unsolicited emails or social media ads offering discounts that seem impossibly low are a major red flag. Scammers often pressure you to act fast, using phrases like “limited stock” or “offer ends tonight.” Legitimate retailers rarely rush you that aggressively.

Inspect the website before you enter payment details. Look for obvious misspellings in the URL, poor grammar in product descriptions, and missing contact information. A secure site will have “https://” at the beginning of the address, but note that a padlock icon alone is not a guarantee of legitimacy—some fraudulent sites also use SSL certificates.

Double-check the seller. If you’re buying from a marketplace like Amazon or eBay, review the seller’s history and read recent customer feedback. For independent websites, try searching the business name with words like “scam” or “complaint” to see if others have reported problems. The Better Business Bureau and FTC’s Consumer Complaint Database are also useful.

Use a payment method that offers fraud protection. Credit cards generally provide the strongest safeguards. If something goes wrong, you can dispute the charge. Debit cards, wire transfers, peer-to-peer apps (like Venmo or Cash App), and gift cards are much harder to recover. Scammers almost always ask for these irreversible methods. Never pay a seller who insists on gift cards.

Report the scam if you encounter one. If you lose money or even just see a suspicious offer, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at ic3.gov. Reporting helps authorities track patterns and may prevent others from being victimized.

Stay updated. Government agencies release new warnings periodically. Sign up for alerts from the FTC or check VA News for seasonal shopping safety tips. The landscape changes, but the fundamentals remain the same.

Sources

  • VA News, “Watch out for scams and stay safe while online shopping,” January 2026 (va.gov)
  • VA News, “Navigating holiday shopping risks when shopping online,” November 2024 (va.gov)
  • FBI, “FBI Releases Annual Internet Crime Report,” May 2025 (fbi.gov)
  • FTC Consumer Advice, “Spot Health Insurance Scams” and related shopping fraud guidance (ftc.gov)

No single resource covers every scenario, but by combining advice from these official sources and staying alert, you can reduce your chances of becoming a victim. Shopping online doesn’t have to be risky—it just requires a bit of caution and the willingness to verify before you pay.