Being one of the most popular eCommerce platforms, Shopify’s an attractive target for online scammers, especially Shopify scam stores. In this blog, we’ll explore the world of Shopify scam stores and discuss how to identify them, examples of recent high-profile cases, how Shopify is addressing the issue, and what to do if you’ve been scammed. Through this article, you’ll be better equipped to navigate the world of online shopping and avoid falling prey to Shopify scam stores.
First things first, you need to understand the definition: Shopify scam stores are online shops that operate on the Shopify platform but use deceptive tactics to trick people into buying fake or low-quality products, stealing their personal information, or taking their money without delivering the promised goods or services.
7 Common Shopify Scam Stores recently
Triangulation Scam
A triangulation scam happens when there are three parties: the unsuspecting customer, the legitimate third-party seller or supplier, and the scammer, who acts as a middleman. To make this scam happen, first, the scammers will create a real Shopify store, in which they sell really high-end items at ridiculously low prices. After the customer purchases and pays, the scammer will then place an order for the seller or supplier with the customer’s order information but using a different credit card, that most likely has been stolen. The customer in this scenario will still receive their purchase and the scammers receive the money, but the victim here is going to be the seller or supplier. Because, in the end, the charge that the scammer made will be refuted by the credit card company. And the supplier/seller is going to lose their products when they haven’t received any payment for them. If the supplier tries to sue, they can’t because the scammer leaves no trace. All the information they got belonged to either the customer or the owner of the stolen credit cards.
In some situations, the customer who buys the product is not really unharmed. The product that customers receive may be counterfeit, of poor quality, or completely different from what they ordered. If any issues happen with the product, there is no way to contact the fake online store or the scammer, as they’re untraceable. And this scam often occurs in the drop-shipping industry, and it is one of the most profitable scams. That’s because the scammer doesn’t just do this to one seller or supplier, but rather a bundle of them with personal information from hundreds of customers.
Duplicate Store Scheme
This is another extremely popular scam, and you can easily spot it on many eCommerce platforms. A duplicate store scheme happens when scammers create one or many stores that lookalike or even identical to the original, already well-loved, and often high-end store. They copy the design, layout, and logo of a legitimate store to make it difficult for customers to detect the scam.
Like the previous scam, this faux store will try to sell its products at a fraction of the price as the real ones. But these products will likely be inferior quality, counterfeit, or even nonexistent. Most of the time, the buyers won’t find out about it. But when they do find out, the chance of getting their money back is so little, and not worth their time and effort to go through all the troubles to cash it back. Because these scammers are really up-to-date with all the current policies of the platform, while most of the buyers aren’t, they may not even know about the existence of the policies that were made specifically to protect them. Afterward, the scammer may also use the customer’s payment information to commit further acts of scam or fraud.
Tracking Number Scheme
This scheme is often seen in the PayPal user community, as it’s based on PayPal’s policy of automatically siding with the seller when a tracking number has been submitted for them, no matter whether they are real or fake. This is also a common scam tactic that some fraudulent sellers use to take advantage of honest buyers.
First, the scammer will provide the buyer with a fake tracking number for a product that they may not even have actually shipped. The buyer will then try to contact the seller, but will likely receive no response. When the buyer files a dispute with PayPal, the scammer will provide the fake tracking number as proof of delivery, causing PayPal to automatically side with the scammer.
Read more: https://magenest.com/en/shopify-scam-stores/
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