Beware of Fake E-shops

In recent weeks, there have been numerous cases of Czech e-shops being replicated by Chinese scammers. See the most used tricks by scammers and how you can protect yourself.

TL;DR

Fake e-shops acting as trusted brands such as Tescoma , Sportisimo , and SuperZoo  are being promoted through Facebook advertisements. They seem real but are actually phishing scams designed to steal your money. Always do:

• double-check links and URL,
• avoid deals that seem too good to be true,
• never prepay unless you’re sure the site is legitimate.

How Does It Work?

These scammers use Facebook advertisement campaigns to promote their trustworthy-looking, but fake e-shops. Clicking on the links takes you to phishing websites, almost identical to the original ones, designed to steal your money. They attract victims by promising massive discounts. But, as soon as you enter your personal information and send the payment, you will never hear from them again and never receive your payment back.

The Goal of These Scams?

To steal your money. They either:

• try to make you spend as much money as possible by making the offer seem irresistible or
• aim to get your bank account information to gain access to your savings.

How Can You Protect Yourself?

Let us help you

• We offer Safe Surfing   - a built-in, easy-to-use, lightweight VPN on our Redamp.io platform that automatically blocks harmful URLs like fake payment gateways, fake bank portals or fake delivery service websites.
• Moreover, we’ll notify you about new and ongoing scams in your area with short alerts, helping you stay one step ahead of the scammers.

Check links before clicking

Check for anything suspicious, such as unusual names, misspellings, or small mistakes, such as www.tescona.cz instead of www.tescoma.cz.

• On a computer, you can hover the mouse cursor over a link to preview the actual URL in the bottom-left corner of the screen before clicking it.
• On a phone, long-press the link or button before clicking it. Most smartphones will display a preview of the URL.

Verify the Website

Make sure that the link you are visiting is the shop's official website. There are numerous sites designed to help you.

• Look up the products on sites like Google shopping  or Zboží.cz  (for CZ) and see whether the site is listed as a seller, check for differences like different prices, or links leading elsewhere.
• Search for the e-shop on Trustpilot , Najisto  (for CZ) or Firmy.cz  (for CZ) and look whether the link in the shop information there matches the one you are currently visiting.

Be skeptical

Beware of offers that seem too good to be true. Many of these sites offer discounts as high as 90%, which seems rather unusual, especially for well-known reputable brands such as Tescoma, Sportisimo, or SuperZoo.

Take countermeasures

• Avoid entering sensitive information on websites or apps unless you are certain they are legitimate. Note: Even legitimate sites can be compromised by hackers, so always consider carefully what details you share.
• Opt for payment on delivery when shopping from non-renowned or unfamiliar stores.
• If you happen to pay in advance to a fake shop, you will likely lose the money spent on the nonexistent product. However, if you entered your bank details (the scammers obtained your login), you could risk losing all your money in that bank.
• If prepayment is required, consider using a temporary virtual credit card – in the worst case you might lose the amount paid, but your account and savings remain secure.