Online Shopping Scams

How to Spot Online Shopping Scams: Tips from Government Agencies Introduction Online shopping has made buying nearly anything simple—but it has also opened the door to fraud that costs consumers billions every year. The FBI’s 2024 Internet Crime Report recorded over $10 billion in reported losses, with shopping scams consistently ranking among the top complaint categories. Veterans, military families, and everyday shoppers are all targets. Recent alerts from the VA, the FTC, and the FBI offer straightforward guidance that can help you avoid becoming a victim. ...

Nearly 1 in 3 Americans Has Been Scammed While Shopping Online – Here’s What to Watch For Intro If you’ve ever clicked a too-good-to-be-true deal on social media or entered payment details on a sketchy website, you’re far from alone. A new survey from the Pew Research Center found that roughly one in three Americans say they have experienced an online shopping scam. The figure underscores how common these schemes have become—and why taking a few extra seconds before hitting “buy” can save you both money and frustration. ...

1 in 3 Americans Have Been Scammed While Shopping Online – Here’s How to Stay Safe If you’ve ever clicked “buy” on a deal that looked too good to be true, then watched the package never arrive, you’re far from alone. A recent Pew Research Center survey found that about a third of American adults say they have experienced an online shopping scam. That’s roughly 80 million people, and the number has been climbing steadily as more of our spending shifts to digital storefronts. ...

1 in 3 Americans Got Scammed Shopping Online: Here’s How to Avoid It If you shop online—and most of us do—you’ve probably wondered whether that unbelievable deal or unfamiliar website is legitimate. New data from the Pew Research Center, released in November 2025, suggests that your caution is warranted. According to a national survey conducted in July 2025, about one in three U.S. adults say they have personally experienced an online shopping scam. ...

AI-Powered Fake Online Shops Are Stealing Payment Data: How to Spot Them If you’ve shopped online recently, you’ve probably noticed how polished even small e‑commerce sites can look. That’s partly thanks to AI tools that generate product photos, write descriptions, and even produce believable customer reviews. Unfortunately, scammers now use the same technology to create fake storefronts that look almost identical to legitimate retailers. Their goal is to get you to enter payment details—and then disappear with your data. ...

How to Spot AI-Powered Fake Online Shops That Steal Your Payment Data Intro If you’ve been searching for a bargain online lately, you might have noticed something odd: prices that seem impossibly low, product photos that look slightly off, and websites that appear legitimate but just don’t feel right. You’re not imagining things. Scammers are now using generative AI to build convincing fake online stores in minutes—and they’re after your payment details. ...

Prime Day Scams Are Exploding: 9 Ways to Keep Your Money Safe Every major online shopping event brings a surge in deals—and a matching surge in scams. Prime Day is no exception. As retailers prepare their promotions, scammers are also ramping up fake websites, phishing emails, and counterfeit listings designed to separate shoppers from their money and personal information. ...

Prime Day Shopping? Here’s How to Spot Fake Deals and Stay Safe Intro Prime Day has become one of the biggest online shopping events of the year, but that surge in traffic also draws a predictable crowd: scammers. Every major sales period—Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Prime Day—sees a spike in phishing emails, fake websites, and fraudulent sellers. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) consistently warns that these high-traffic windows are when criminals are most active. ...

Don’t Get Caught by Prime Day Scams: 9 Tips for Safe Shopping Every year, major sales events like Amazon Prime Day bring a flood of deals — and a flood of scams. Cybercriminals know that shoppers are in a hurry, distracted by discounts, and more likely to let their guard down. According to the Federal Trade Commission and the Better Business Bureau, reports of online shopping fraud spike during these periods. Fake websites, phishing emails, and counterfeit goods become more common. ...

9 Ways to Avoid Shopping Scams on Prime Day Prime Day is a magnet for bargain hunters — and for scammers. The same spike in legitimate deals also brings a flood of phishing emails, fake websites, and too-good-to-be-true offers designed to steal your money or personal information. This year, even a single careless click can cost you. Here’s what’s happening and how to protect yourself. ...