Identifying Obvious Scammers and Their Websites

There are many scam websites on the internet. There are fraudulent bank, courier, delivery, escrow, auction, government, law enforcement, job recruiter, oil companies, employers, immigration, non-government organizations, law firms, consumer stores, pet delivery companies, etc. The list is endless. Any website you encounter could be fraudulent, even if it looks fantastic! Some scammers use scam websites to make fraudulent companies appear legitimate and their scams more believable

Just as importantly there are scammers who say they are, or work for those same companies above, yet they don’t have their own domain or website and they use free email addresses, especially ones chosen to match their supposed company or government name! That indicates that they are scammers! Please also read “Anatomy of a Scam Email”

Always ask a prospective company or governmental agency for the name of their website and if they claim not to have a website, or say their website is under construction or maintenance or development or they removed it because of hackers, they don’t have a website and are probably scammers. If they they are using a free hosted/sub-domain website or a free domain redirect, there are probably dealing with a scammer! (See “Free Hosted/Sub-Domain Websites” and “Free Domains Redirects below)

Many scammers use paid domain websites however some do not for several reasons explained later in this article: (1) they attract more attention from and are frequently posted on anti-fraud sites giving the scam and scammer unwanted exposure, (2) they are frequently removed for abuse and (3) a domain, and therefore a company, can be identified as fraudulent by finding out how recently the domain was registered with www.domaintools.com. See “Paid Domain/Websites” below.

There are some simple ways that some scam websites can be spotted. This article will not make you an expert. Just because a website does not meet the guidelines below, it does not mean its not a scam! If after using the information in this article, you are still unsure as to whether or not a website is a scam, you should post the name of the company, the website and the contact information in the forum and a support person will look at it. There are other articles that can help identify fraud and fraudulent websites:Internet Fraud Support and Information, aa419’s Online Search Tools and ScamChecker Website Scam Checklist and Cyber Crime Ops “Due Your Own Due Diligence” If you find a website that you think is fraudulent please post it on this forum so that others can be warned and an abuse report can be filed against it. You can also submit it to aa419’s BlowaWhistle which is also a investigative tool.

Netcraft’s toolbar is a free add on for Firefox browser which can help identify fraud sites though we do not endorse it. It has a risk rating system for each website, and shows the approximate date the domain was registered. It can warn you when you visit some fake phishing sites.

A Company or Government Agency That Does Not Have It’s Own Domain and Website is Very Suspicious

Almost all legitimate companies and government agencies have websites and domains! (If “https://www.website.com” is the website, the domain is “website.com”) A company or government buys and registers a domain and then pays a hosting company to host a website on that domain. Domains and website hosting cost very little considering their importance in the internet age, so there is almost no reason for a legit company or governmental agency not to have a domain and a website! Unfortunately, “companies” and “government agencies” who want to do “business” with you and don’t have domains or websites are often scammers.

B2B Scammerss

There are “companies” that join and advertise extensively on B2B networks such as Tradekey, Alibaba, Gmdu.net, EcPlaza, Tradeboss, to name just a few. Though many of these companies claim to have thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales, 100 or more employees, they don’t have their own domain and/or website and only have a website on the B2B network subdomain? That is a good indication they are scammers. B2B networks are infested with them. Never assume that because a company is on a B2B network or is a “Trustpass” or “Gold” member that they are not scammers. Many of these scammers will only use small B2B websites or appear in B2B directories. Please also read: Africa Import/Export Scam.

Be Very Wary of “Companies” Who Say There Websites Are Under Construction or Maintenance

Some scammers claim they have websites but they are “under construction” or “under maintenance”, or they removed their website because of hackers or fraudsters. No legitimate company or governmental agency would make either excuse or.... Read More on our Website : https://blinkcommercialgroup.com/antifraud/

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