How to avoid online scams in the UK

• Is the offer too good to be true? Does it offer a profit in less than a week? That's what scammers do!
• RULE NUMBER 1 - ANYONE THAT TELLS YOU THEY NEED TO TAKE REMOTE CONTROL OF YOUR COMPUTER, UNLESS YOU KNOW THEM WELL AND THEY ARE FIXING YOUR COMPUTER, IS A SCAMMER!
• What does it say at the bottom of the web page? Are there any disclaimers or warnings?
• Check the address and see if you can verify it on Google Maps (Google send a postcard to businesses as a verification method to check their addresses)
• Check for a company registration number on the website, this is a legal requirement in the UK
• Double-check the domain name

 carefully and ensure that the last part is correct. Scammers often use domains like halifax-bank.otherdomain.com to confuse people
• Never pay by bank or wire transfer


• Email the website in advance and check that you are connecting to the right people
• Check the returns and privacy polic
ies and the terms and conditions
• Beware of online reviews - many scammers start out by populating Trustpilot and making fake review sites
• Look for a padlock
 or https at the front of the address in the address bar to ensure a proper certificate is encoding the website traffic for security
• Check the FCA website for information about any company asking for money or selling investments
• Microsoft Edge has a good response to reported fraud - much better (in our experience and opinion) than Google Chrome who never blacklist their own Google sites even if they are reported and sell a lot of advertising space to scammers
• Never trust an advert (in our opinion) on FaceBook or Twitter or any other social network
• Never trust (in our opinion) a video ad on one of the video sharing platforms