Online Shopping and Travel Scams

The love of money motivates people to commit fraud. 

A few online safety tips will protect you from fraud and scams. Only shop legitimate sites and don’t make purchases on social platforms. Always search reviews for companies first and use credit cards for secured transactions. Don’t use cash apps or wire transfers. If you get links or attachments from unknown sources, never, ever click on them. Avoid deals that are too good to be true. Products with 5-star and possibly bogus customer reviews are questionable. If detailed personal information is requested, or pages have typos and grammatical errors, you’ve probably stumbled onto a fraudulent website. If the website address looks odd, doesn’t have the padlock symbol for security, and provides no contact details, skip the purchase. Some of you may already be making vacation plans.

Watch Out for scammers offering

• Vacation rentals

• Free vacations

• Hotel discounts

• Third-party booking site scams

• And timeshare reselling frauds

The Better Business Bureau recommends that you get trip details in writing before making a payment. If you ever get unsolicited offers, especially those that are time-sensitive, they’re probably from some friendly scammer. Delete the offer as soon as you can or report it to the FBI. Remember, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.” (1 Timothy 6:10) Protect yourself from those who want your money. 

And if you’re coming out of the holidays overloaded with credit card debt , then I recommend Christian Credit Counselors. They’ll create a debt management plan that will work for you. For more information call the Crown Helpline: 800-722-1976 or visit online at crown.org/ccc.