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Black Friday Shopping

Online shopping fraud

Shopping fraud is where the buyer doesn’t receive the goods after making payments, receives fake / counterfeit goods or the goods received are not as described. The seller can also be deceived, having sent their goods they do not receive payment.

More prevalent since covid as more and more people shopping online

Many people are getting caught out on scam shops on social media, cloned websites or on legitimate second sales sites or where they are persuaded to go off-site for a cheaper cash deal.

Many of these scams are in the area of ticket sales especially where popular acts are performing and tickets are scare

It is estimated that up to ten million online transactions were carried out over the Christmas shopping period.

Many victims are deceived by scam shops and first see ads on social media for websites which present themselves as Irish shops selling online, often at huge discounts. There are thousands of these ads running across social media platforms and they appear in your feed as ‘sponsored’, which means they have been paid for. This can make them seem like a genuine business. However, many of them are not legitimate. They may have names which make them sound like they are based in Ireland. What to look out for:

 

  • Sponsored ads on social media
  • Name suggests Irish owned and based
  • Sad back story – family business closing down after many years due to high costs, fire or break-in
  • Urgent action – “sale ends today!”
  • Large discounts – “up to 80% off”
  • Website and social media profiles set up very recently
  • Reviews on the site are all five star, or are images instead of links to actual reviews on independent review websites
  • Important to do your research before you make a purchase

How to spot a scam shop:

Social media – If you spot an ad on social media, check the business’s profile to see if it looks like it is well established. The About information should tell you when the page was set up, how many followers it has, and provide other details like website, phone number and where they are based. The Transparency section can also tell you more, including where the administrators are based.

Website – Just because a website has an .ie address does not mean it is an Irish registered business. Under consumer law, a business must provide contact details, so look for a name, physical address, phone number and email. You can check Google maps and street view to see if the business is where it says it is. Check the bottom of the website for a copyright date; this can tell you when the website was set up. Or you can check online to see when it was set up. You should be suspicious if you can’t find contact details, or the website looks like it has only recently been set up.

Check reviews – Check reviews for the website, but don’t just trust the reviews you see on the website, especially if they are all very positive. Look it up on other independent review websites like Trustpilot or on social media sites like Reddit. You will very quickly see if other people have had bad experiences.

Reports of online shopping fraud has risen in 2025

  • in 2022, there were 693 reports,
  • in 2023 there were 1,895 reports,
  • in 2024 there were 1,071 reports and
  • in the first 9 months of 2025, there were 2,288 reports – this is a 235% increase.
  • In 2022, victims reported losses of €641,347,
  • in 2023 it was €1,357,401,
  • in 2024 it was €778,645 and
  • in first 9 months of 2025 it was €1,123,284

Main tips to help keep consumers safe are.

Use secure websites. Make sure the website you are on is real – not cloned or fake. Make sure your internet access is secure. Make sure there is an "https" at the beginning of the web address and a padlock symbol displayed beside the URL before the purchase is made - this indicates a secure connection. URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator. A URL is nothing more than the address of a given unique resource on the Web. When the beginning of the retailer’s website address changes from ‘http’ to ‘https’ before a purchase is made it means that you are using a secure connection

Look for the trust seals – Trust seals are commonly placed on homepages, login pages, and checkout pages. They’re immediately recognizable and they remind visitors that they are secure on this page. YOU CAN CLICK ON THEM TO SEE IF REAL. EGs of trust seals

online_shopping_fraud_trust_seals
online_shopping_fraud_trust_seals

Know the website’s policy on refunds and know your consumer rights. They are protected if proper site used

Where selling platforms offer an official, safe way of paying, use this rather than sending money directly to a third party – otherwise Use an online payment option such as PayPal, which helps to protect you.

Check their payment methods – always pay with credit cards. Never transfer money direct or pay cash

Read the Terms and Conditions – Ensure you are fully aware of any payment commitments you are entering into, including whether you are instructing a single payment or a series of recurring payments. Be particularly careful to read the terms and conditions when signing up for a free trial that requests your credit or debit card details. Paid subscriptions can automatically kick-in at the end of the free trial so check for any cancellation policy

If a website is asking you to send money to a random PayPal address, wire it by Western Union, pay in iTunes gift cards or only deals in cryptocurrency, that should send up a red flag. The majority of the time, those methods are done to avoid scrutiny and ensure that a transaction can’t be reversed.

Don’t enter into off site communications for a lower cash price

Do not under any circumstances use public Wi-Fi when making payments - switch to 3G/4G on your phone if necessary

Independently visit the website of the online sales company as opposed to clicking on social media or pop-up adverts

Be extremely careful when buying things from people with little or no selling history.

If you bid for an item unsuccessfully, don’t be tempted to trade off-site if another seller approaches you with a similar item.

Be careful when using direct banking transactions to pay for goods. Make sure transactions are secure.

Don’t send confidential personal or financial information by email.

Be wary where personal / sensitive info is being sought

Check the IBAN of the bank the seller wants you to send money to - good indicator if the bank you are paying into is in a different country to where the proposed location of the seller / goods are – can check IBANs on google. IBAN numbers can be checked on all search engines – this is as link to one such site - https://www.iban.com/iban-checker - it will tell you the country and address of the bank

If the seller is unknown to you, do some research - call them, authenticate their phone number and business, check if they have a physical address. 

Always keep a record of your purchase, print or save a copy of your order. Ensure you read the terms and conditions associated with any purchase. 

Keep your computer and security up to date – Install a reliable antivirus and browser security software. Ensure it has the latest updates and that it scans your computer regularly to check for malware. Make sure your browser is set to the highest level of security notification and monitoring. These safety options are not always activated by default when you purchase and install your computer.

Be cautious about emails claiming outrageous offers or online ads offering miracle products – Generally if it sound too good to be true, it probably is.

Pay attention to your own instincts – If you have any doubts about giving out your card details, end the transaction and purchase your goods elsewhere.

Be password savvy – The best passwords are alpha-numeric (using letters and numbers) and at least 8 characters in length.

3D Secure – This is a tool available for cardholders that protects your MasterCard or Visa Card against unauthorised Internet use. 3D Secure enables you to verify that you are the actual cardholder in a similar way to keying in a PIN at the Point of Sale

Know who you are dealing with – Try to find out as much as you can about the retailer before you purchase anything from them. Use shops that your friends and colleagues have used successfully or ones that you have heard about through trusted sources.