Fraud by an online store: is it possible to get your money back?

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Published: 09/11/2018

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The accessibility, popularity and large number of various sites on the Internet make them attractive not only to consumers, but also to scammers. What are the typical scams in online stores?

• C.O.D
• Super offers
• Social network pages
• How to avoid becoming a victim of online fraud
• How to get money back for a purchase in an online store if you were scammed?
• How to file a complaint against an online store? Drawing up a complaint
• Procedure for filing a complaint against an online store

C.O.D

Many fans of online shopping calm down when they see that they can pay for the goods upon receipt at the post office. However, it is worth considering the fact that you can see the contents of the parcel only after it has been paid for. Many unscrupulous owners of online stores take advantage of this, sending items of poor quality or completely different items instead of ordered goods.

It is quite difficult to catch such violators, since such sites are created for a short period of time and are deleted after collecting a certain amount. In this case, you will not be able to hold anyone accountable.

The only way out in such a situation is to refuse to receive the goods. You may not come to the post office, and if you do not pick up the parcel within a month, it will be sent back, and the scammer will be forced to pay for storage and double delivery.

Some attackers, if buyers do not pick up the parcel, call them with threats to immediately receive the goods, otherwise they will be forced to contact the tax service. In fact, no normal store will do this, so you should not pay attention to such calls. If the demands of the “sellers” come too often, threaten them in response with contacting the appropriate authorities.

What should you do at a car dealership when purchasing so as not to be deceived?

1. Of course, it is necessary to check the technical condition of the vehicle , since it is objectively an important aspect in the matter of purchasing a vehicle.
2. But an equally important circumstance is checking the documents of the previous owner, documents for the vehicle, as well as documents drawn up by the car dealership for the upcoming transaction.
3. First of all, you need to make sure that the owner of the vehicle is a car dealership . The seller, if he is a legal entity, is obliged to provide title documents that the legal entity is valid, has not been liquidated, or ceased its activities. The specified facts can also be checked on the website of the Federal Tax Service in the section extracts from the Unified State Register or Unified State Register, where you can also obtain the specified information.
4. The next step is to proceed to directly checking the documents for the purchased vehicle . The seller must provide a purchase and sale agreement, a certificate of state registration of the vehicle, a Vehicle Passport, where the owner of the property must indicate a specific car dealership (legal entity).
5. And the last step to verify the legality of the transaction, it is necessary to carefully study the purchase and sale agreement concluded with the consumer; it must indicate the correct identification data belonging to the specific vehicle, that the product is free from the rights of third parties. It is imperative, if the purchase of a vehicle is accompanied by a loan, to pay attention to the interest rate, the cost of the vehicle, as well as additional services in the form of imposed insurance, in addition to compulsory motor liability insurance, CASCO insurance (life, health, etc.).

Super offers

Quite often you come across advertisements about 99% discounts and sales for 1 ruble due to liquidation. Most often, the objects of such discounts are the latest models of famous smartphones, clothing and cosmetics of popular brands.

If you decide to buy yourself a phone with a 100% discount, you will not spend money on the purchase. But then you need to pay for delivery, which in fact will not happen . Beware of such “bargain” offers.

Where to go if you have been deceived by car scammers

Another common case of fraud is a message to your phone with the text “Your card is blocked. For more information, call ________.” And when a person calls the specified number, a fairly large amount is debited from his balance in seconds. And if a gullible citizen also follows the “instructions” for unlocking the card, he may even lose the funds in his account.

Fraudsters come up with more and more new schemes, which become more sophisticated each time.

Telephone scam (read more...)

Social network pages

Many scammers do not spend time developing an “official” website, but simply create a group or page on one of the well-known social networks where they post photos of “products.”

When a potential buyer sees activity in the form of regularly updated posts and a large audience, he develops trust. However, it is worth considering that the subscribers in this case are fake pages, and reviews, as a rule, are written for money.

After the attacker receives the required amount from trusting users, he will delete the page.

By what signs can fraud be distinguished from theft and robbery?

How to punish for fraud

Law enforcement agencies of Azerbaijan have put on the international wanted list the former rector of the private Azerbaijan International University (AMU), Elshad Abdullayev, who is in exile. He is accused of trafficking in human organs and abuse of power. Prosecutor General's Office, the investigation continues into the criminal case initiated by the Main Anti-Corruption Directorate under the Prosecutor General against the former rector of AMU Elshad Abdullayev and other officials in connection with their illegal actions.

How to avoid becoming a victim of online fraud

If you see the product you need at an attractive price on a little-known website, do not rush to buy it. The following signs will help you identify an unreliable online store:

1. Simple website design . If the page has inconvenient navigation and the site overall looks unpleasant, most likely the owner skimped on its development. Or the page was created for a short time.
2. Official registration . All licensed stores have a legal address. If it is not listed on the site you find, or false information is written, then this store is a fake.
3. Feedback . Well-known online stores offer high-quality and polite service. If your calls are not answered or the site does not provide any feedback information, you should not make a purchase on it.

Sale/purchase with delivery

Remote payment and delivery give scammers room for activity. If you use third-party payment instruments and delivery services rather than services linked to the site that provide security, fraudsters can simply send low-quality goods to buyers from another city or use all the above schemes under the pretext of distance. Therefore, if possible, it is better to meet with sellers and buyers from the same city in person. Especially if you are selling or buying a product, the photograph of which makes it unclear whether it is working or not.

If the seller or buyer is in another city and there is no opportunity to meet, it is worth asking when he registered on the site, if he is a seller, how many and what other advertisements he has. The more long-time and active user he turns out to be, the better. If a user registered only yesterday, this is a reason to be wary: scammers often create new accounts. During the communication process, you can offer the interlocutor to use a secure transaction or meet in person. If this is an honest user, he will agree, and if it is a scammer, he will most likely interrupt the conversation. In any case, it is better to use the secure transaction and delivery functions, but only on the site itself (no links!).

How to get money back for a purchase in an online store if you were scammed?

The first thing to do if you suspect fraud on the part of the seller is to write a letter to the store’s support service with a complaint. You can send it to the legal address, which must be indicated in the contact information. If you have not found such information, send a letter to any mailbox listed on the site.

If there is no response, you should contact one of the following authorities:

1. Law enforcement agencies (if funds were obtained through fraud).
2. Consumer Protection Department (if you received a product of inadequate quality).

You can also take steps to get your money back yourself. To do this, you need to contact the bank with a request to cancel the transaction. It is advisable to do this as quickly as possible.

In your application, describe the situation in detail and be sure to attach to it a receipt or other proof of the payment, as well as the details by which the funds were transferred to the fraudster.

In addition to bank cards, electronic money systems are used to pay for online purchases. The most popular are:

• Webmoney;
• Qiwi;
• Pay Pall;
• Yandex money.

You can return funds if they were transferred from an electronic wallet. To do this, you will need to contact the service support team and provide the attacker’s payment information to which you transferred the money.

Scamming payment information

A 37-year-old resident of Yoshkar-Ola posted information about selling a vacuum cleaner on a popular free classifieds site. Soon she received a call from a stranger who expressed his willingness to purchase the device. To make the payment, the false buyer asked to dictate the card number and codes received in SMS messages. The woman conveyed the information. After this, the attacker gained access to her personal account of her mobile bank and transferred several thousand rubles from her bank card to his.

Codes from SMS messages from the bank, PIN code and CVV code of a bank card cannot be dictated or sent to anyone, ever. This data is not needed by buyers or sellers, and even your bank cannot ask for it. Only scammers ask for such data, and always for the purpose of deception. Using them, scammers can gain access to your online banking and withdraw money.

How to file a complaint against an online store?

If you nevertheless become a victim of fraud by an online store, contact law enforcement agencies. You can write a statement to the police department to which you belong at your place of residence. You can also write a statement directly to the regional department “K”, which investigates cases related to Internet fraud.

Drawing up a complaint

In the application you will write, you will need to indicate:

1. The address of the website where you made the purchase.
2. Bank details or electronic wallet number to which the funds were transferred.
3. Nick or the name of the scammer that he used on the social network (as well as a link to it).

If you have any other data (phone number, email address, etc.), be sure to report this information to law enforcement agencies. This will help you find the criminal faster.

When filing a complaint, you must also provide the necessary personal information.

How to punish for fraud

Punishment is the exclusive prerogative of government agencies. If the procedure is followed, the counterparty will not escape the consequences. This is especially true in cases of fraud. Unlawful actions on the part of the seller will entail liability under Art. 159.6 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, specifically: a fine of 500 thousand rubles or imprisonment for up to six years.

The consumer will receive not only money, but also possible compensation. Online fraud will not lead to anything good. It makes sense to leave a negative review about an online store so that other users can see the scammer and order goods only from trusted organizations.

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