Think long and hard about a deal that sounds to good to be true.
1. Get all the details by checking into the seller. Do they have a website, a storefront, or good contact information? Ask for references and alternate contact numbers.

2. When purchasing, always pay with a credit card. Under federal law, you have dispute rights for products not received or fraudulent charges.

3. Ask yourself, do you really want to buy products from someone overseas? There are multiple scams originating from overseas. Beware of people offering to deposit large amounts of money in your account in exchange for a percentage. Stay away from people offering to "over-pay" in exchange for the difference. What legit seller does this?

4. Never give out your personal information. Pay using a secure source like paypal.com. They offer convenience so the buyer never sees your credit card information.

5. Never use western union, cashier's checks, or cash. Use a payment option that's secure, and on your terms. We cautious when the sellers payment terms.

6. Check your credit report frequently. We recommend you or

7. Familiarize yourself with phishing scams. Once you start reading through example scams, you'll become familar with the common words and techniques scammers use.

Please see the examples below:

Wire Transfer Fraud

Attackers commonly use the "wire transfer" scam to get merchants bank account information. They will entice the merchant by requesting for a larger than normal quote on products. Then, they accept the quote right away and ask for the merchants bank account information to make a wire transfer. NEVER use wire transfers when conducting business online with unknown buyers. They will use online check producing systems that don't verify merchant identities before accepting account information.

We highly recommend staying AWAY from buyers in a country other than the one you reside in. Although you may find some great deals, scammers are known to target potential victims of other countries.

Online Automotive Fraud

Online automotive fraud can originate from fraudulent buyers or sellers:

1. The scammer will take car pictures from other sources and re-post them online as if they had the products themselves. The vehicle is normally listed well below its retail or private party blue book value. Once you contact the scammer, they tell you the vehicle is overseas, but they have no problem covering the shipping costs if you purchase right away. After agreeing, they ask for a "small" deposit to start the shipping process. Then, once you wire the money, you'll never hear from the fake seller again.

2. The scammer contacts an automobile seller displaying interest in a vehicle. After selling a bogus story as to why they have a certified check for over the asking price, the scammer talks the seller into accepting the check and wiring the difference. The want to make the transaction quick as if its such a hurry to make the transaction. After depositing the check and quickly wiring the extra cash, days later the seller finds that the check bounced and the bank is coming after them for the cash. NEVER trust buyers that seem to be in a "big" hurry.

Business opportunity/"Work-at-Home" scams

There are many online opportunities to work-at-home, but be weary of those that sound too good and guarantee thousands monthly. These scams normally require a small initial free ranging from $40 to a few hundred. Although this doesn't seem like a lot of money, think of the impact if the scammer gets 5,000 people to pay $100 from a one month scam. Be very careful when looking at business opportunities. Do your research on the company. Find out how long they've been in business, who are their references, and what are their contact numbers?