How to avoid getting Scammed!

Scams have become part of business risks we encounter or are likely to come across, one way or another. Majority of online business need to watchout and be able to make sound judgement about who they transact or want to transact business with. In order to guard against scams, an individual or company needs to be educated or enlightened about how scammers work and some of the things to look out for, when going into any business deal. Scams come in various forms and the scamming tactics could vary from scammer to scammer, depending on location, educational background, sophistication in terms of use of hacking and computer expertise and orchestration of the intended scam. And the amount of money involved sometimes determine the tactic used or whether it’s an individual, a group of scammers or even a scamming company. You need to open your eyes wide, and make some findings before jumping at any business opportunity you come across. The prevalence of scams exists more in the online world compared to offline.

Here are some tips on protecting yourself, note that the first rule to avoiding scam is to shun greed, then;

• Check to make sure you have full contact details of the company on their website. They should have a full business name and registration number. You could even check them out at their address, if you can.

• Search the domain name of their website on www.allwhois.com, or www.coolwhois.com, at least a legit company would reserve their domain name for about 3 – 15 years. You will also get to see the registrant of the domain name.

• To know a sure scammer, copy and paste some of the content on their site into Google, and you will be able to know and see if it was stolen from another site.

• When a company doesn’t ask for your tax or business number, especially for substantial sums of cash, suspect scam.

• Scammers like to use unsecure modes of payment like Western Union, Bank transfers (even though some legit China companies do).

• You could start with ordering a few items to check out the company.

• Scammers usually want upfront payment, 100%, even when they claim the product is not in stock or can’t even send you a product sample.

• A company should have a landline number not just a mobile one. Be wary when you call their line and the dude that picks up the phone sounds un-professional, least he should be able to identify himself and or his company name, when speaking with a potential customer. Scammers don’t usually sound business-like.

When dealing with a one-man scammer then you need to be more careful, they are up to no good at all. Their tactics range from contacting you through emails, on phone and through chat rooms. You mustn’t let your guard down when dealing with a total stranger, and like the saying goes, “if it sounds too good to be true, then it is…” don’t get swept off your feet by a sweet-talking scammer.

Some even tell you their father was one rich old dude who kicked the bucket with a whole lot of money stashed in a US bank account, and will reward you handsomely if they could get your help in recovering the cash, if you fall for that, too bad! Then they ask you for your full name, address, phone number, even your bank details so they could transfer the money into your account. Whenever you see such, just know its got ”SCAM” written all over it.

Another scamming game is the one in which you get an announcement in your email that you have won a certain lottery you never even dreamt of participating in, they tell you that you won a large sum of money, usually millions of dollars or pounds…..don’t fall for the scam, the mail is not worth opening in the first place. Remember the first rule…..never be a greedy chap!

What ever you do, think twice before you leap, else you might have no one to blame but your dear self. The online world is full of faceless people and you don’t wanna fall victim of a scam. Have a scam-free internet experience!