Is this shop real? Seven checks before you pay

The seven checks

1. 1Read the domain character by character. A single changed letter, a hyphen, or a suffix that is not the real brand's is the whole trick.
2. 2Look up when the domain was registered. Days or weeks old, for a shop selling known brands, means the site is disposable.
3. 3Find the contact page. A real trader has a company name, a registration number, an address and a working phone number.
4. 4Call it, or send a question and time the reply. Silence or a templated answer is information.
5. 5Compare a few prices against the brand's own site. Uniformly deep discounts on everything are not a sale.
6. 6Look for the returns and shipping terms. A shop without a returns policy is selling you something different from what it shows.
7. 7Check what payment methods exist. Prefer a card, where the dispute process protects you, over a transfer where nothing can be recalled.

The checks that do not work

• A padlock in the address bar only means the connection is encrypted. Fake shops have certificates too.
• Trust seals and logos at the bottom of the page are images. They are copied along with the design.
• Star ratings on the site itself are written by whoever owns the site.
• Photos that appear elsewhere — reverse-search the product image and see whether the same photograph is sold by five different stores under five different names.

If you already paid

1. 1Contact your bank or card issuer now and ask about a chargeback. Being early is most of the advantage.
2. 2Keep the order confirmation, the payment reference and screenshots of the product page as it was when you bought.
3. 3If you paid by bank transfer, call the bank immediately and ask whether a recall is possible — it rarely is, but the window is measured in hours.
4. 4Report the site to your national consumer authority and to the brand whose name it copied; they pursue these directly.