The nationwide baby formula shortage has many people around the country looking for alternative means to find much-needed products. The Better Business Bureau says scammers are aware of the opportunity to monetize the crisis.
Spokesman Josh Planos says online shopping experienced a big boom during the COVID-19 pandemic, as many brick-and-mortar businesses either began or improved their efforts in the digital space. Ads for great online deals are everywhere, tempting consumers with great prices and free shipping offers.
Scammers preyed on these online consumers, taking advantage of the hard-to-find items by creating fake websites and substandard products and offering them at “too good to be true” prices. They continue to do so with the baby formula shortage.
“Sometimes consumers find what they ordered is not what they get. Many ads pop up with enticing gadgets, cute merchandise or items with a subliminal “I gotta have it” messages, making it irresistible to click and check it out,” Planos says. “Unfortunately, some of these companies aren’t quite what they seem. Some consumers find that once the order is placed, the company doesn’t send the product, or it is not of good quality.”
Signs of a potential online purchase scam include:
- Positive reviews on the website that have been copied from honest sites or created by scammers. Be aware, some review websites claim to be independent but are funded by scammers. Check BBB.org.
- No indication of a brick-and-mortar address or the address shows on a Google map as a parking lot, residence, or unrelated business than what is listed on the website.
- Misspellings, grammatical errors, or other descriptive language that is inconsistent with the product.
- The seller advertises on a social media site and is communicative until the payment is made. Once the payment clears, they are unreachable.
Check out the website before making a purchase:
- Visit BBB.org to check a business’s rating and BBB accreditation status. Impostors have been known to copy the BBB seal. If it is real, clicking on the seal will lead to the company’s BBB profile on BBB.org – check the domain of the URL.
- Conduct an internet search with the company name and the word “scam.” This may locate other complaints about the site.
- Make a note of the website where the order is placed. Take a screenshot of the item ordered, in case the website disappears, or a different item is received in the mail than what was advertised.
- Credit cards often provide more protection against fraud than other payment methods.
- Think before you click. Be especially cautious about email solicitations and online ads on social media sites.