Five ways to protect yourself against online scams

With an uptick in drop shipping, it’s not unusual to find what looks like genuine brand items online that are actually knock offs. Now, with plug-and-play website building services, it’s easier (and quicker) than ever for drop-shippers and scammers to create what looks like a legitimate website. A general rule of thumb is that if it looks too good to be true, then it likely is. If a website is selling an item significantly lower than the market price, then there's a fair chance it’s not genuine. 

When purchasing items from a website you haven’t used before, be wary if they ask you for non-secure payment methods like bank transfers, gift cards, or digital currencies such as Bitcoin.

When browsing a site, it’s good to be aware that scammers will likely try to create a sense of urgency with phrases including ‘limited offer’, ‘end-of-year sale’ and ‘countdowns’. Be on the lookout for typos on the site and in the URL as this is also a sign it's a scam site. Plus, steer clear of websites that don’t have privacy policies, terms and conditions, refund information or ways of contacting customer service.

If you're asked to create an online account, protect yourself with a strong and unique password that you haven’t used before. And always look for the little lock symbol next to your browser’s address bar. This symbolises that the website is using an SSL certificate (basically, it’s an indication the data you provide is being handled by a secure service).

Just because you’ve seen a product or sale on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or TikTok doesn’t mean it’s legitimate. While scams were once mainly about bank security, the Australian Government is now urging social media and telecom companies to take greater action against them.

Anyone with a social media account can create an ad – and the ease of access to AI models has made it easier than ever for those ads to appear legitimate. If you’ve been advertised something on socials, do your due diligence and look at the customer reviews. Sometimes ads on social media also allow comments, so make sure to read the comments too and see the overall response. 

In saying that, it’s also easy to fake comments – so if the comments and reviews seem overly positive and bot-like, then these may be fake too.

Most legitimate stores have an active presence on social media. This may look like regular posting and consistent community moderation e.g. responding to comments online. The great thing about platforms like Instagram Reels and TikTok is it takes out a lot of the guesswork out of who is behind the product. The brands that get the most traction online are the ones that show real people talking about a product. A faceless organisation could mean a scam, so be wary of this.

It goes without saying that phishing emails and text messages are everywhere, and scammers are getting better at it. If you receive a text message or email about a sale directing you to a link, the safest bet is not to click and instead search for the sale through your browser. 

Keep tabs on what websites you’ve opted in for, and if you receive a message from a brand you know you haven’t given your details to – don’t click. Again, look out for typos and slight misspellings in the URL and message, as this is a red flag.

Bankwest has a security hub with information on how to protect yourself against scams, which can be found here. Some tips Bankwest highlights to help you increase your scam-sense are looking out for generic greetings that don’t address you by name, direct links to online banking and email requests for more information. Bankwest also has security features like NameCheck, which alerts you if the account details on a first-time payment don’t look right.

If you don’t recognise a transaction in your account, you can also check who is really charging via the Bankwest app. Just click ‘more about this transaction’ for detailed info on who's actually charged you – including the business type, location and contact info.

For more information on how to protect yourself against the latest scams, head to Bankwest’s security hub.

Bankwest, a division of Commonwealth Bank of Australia (Bankwest) ABN 48 123 123 124 AFSL / Australian credit licence 234945.