Shopping Online: Avoiding Scams

Our world has become more and more an “online” world – with many of us doing the majority of our shopping online. According to the retail research firm Digital Commerce 360, Ecommerce saw an increase of more than 50% from 2019 to 2021. This is great when it comes to convenience as well as saving money. We may not be as likely to make that impulse buy. And of course, our gas tank thanks us!

Being aware of specific concerns will enable us to put a stop to becoming just another victim of online shopping fraud.

Beware of These Warning Signs

• Prices that are rock bottom: Always remember the old saying “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.”
• Contact information that is suspicious: Contact phone number is absent or the email used for their customer service is not a corporate email.
• Unusual domains or URLs with unnecessary words or characters (most retailers include only their web address or brand name): Examples of suspicious URLs may include:  .bargain,  .app,  or a foreign domain.
• Downloading software to gain access: This may be required to receive a coupon or discount code. Never download software that is not from a trusted merchant.
• Personal information required: The only information needed is your billing information and shipping address. Do not provide your Social Security Number or Bank Account Number. 
• Payment for purchases made by money transfer services (commonly called Person to Person transfers): Most legitimate businesses will NOT use an unrelated or personal name as their UserName.

Don’t let these warning signs prevent you from shopping online. By taking a few precautions, you can prevent scammers from stealing your hard-earned cash. This will give you the peace of mind you need to continue to take advantage of the options available to you, the consumer.

Keeping You Safe So You Can Bank Better To Live Better

At Coastal we work every single day to protect our members from fraud. We also encourage all of our members to use Coastal's Fraud Prevention Tools - after all, there's no such thing as "too much" security!