Certain advertisements in social media, email or online newspapers might tell you that you are the lucky winner of a great prize. Or they may try to convince you that you can buy well-known brands for only an unbelievably low price. In reality, you end up subscribing to a useless service, such as an anti-wrinkle cream or antivirus program you don´t need.
It often appears that a well-known company is what stands behind the fantastic deal. But the real people behind it may have produced fake news articles from the layout of a well-known news agency, or can pretend to be a trusted retail store.
Tips for recognizing the scammers:
- Check the URL of the advertisement or pop-up window. If CNN or Ikea is really behind the deal, the address will start with cnn.com or www.ikea.com A real campaign is often placed front and centre on the company’s own web page.
- If you have doubts, contact the company that is the supposed source of the campaign to check if it is real or not.
- Search the Internet and social media for others’ experiences with the campaign.
- Check the language. Fake Internet articles and Facebook campaigns are often written with poor grammar as a result of automatic translation tools like Google Translate.
- Fake campaigns often go to excessive lengths to convince consumers that they aren’t scams. Be sceptical of such claims as, “We didn’t believe this ourselves. Then we received a call only a few days later!”
- Read the terms and conditions thoroughly. If you are unable to find the terms for redeeming the prize with minimal effort, this could be a bad sign. The “small print” can hide critical information, like the fact you that you are about to sign up for an expensive subscription.
- Be mindful with your credit card number and other sensitive information. Never enter them on pages you don’t trust.
- Use your gut feeling. Is this campaign too good to be true? It almost always is.
Have you been taken in?
- If you have been tricked into giving away your card information, contact your bank to place a block on the card as soon as possible. If money has been withdrawn from your account, file a claim with your bank. According to the Financial Contracts Act, the bank is responsible for losses caused by unauthorised transactions.
- If the bank does not refund your money, you can submit a complaint to the Norwegian Financial Services Complaints Board. You can also contact the Network of European Consumer Centres about claims against companies situated in other European countries.