Scam websites are designed to look trustworthy — but they share common patterns that give them away once you know what to look for. Here are the 10 most reliable warning signs.
1. Prices That Seem Too Good to Be True
A designer product for 90% off. Free iPhones. Unrealistic discounts are the oldest trick in the scam playbook. Legitimate retailers rarely discount more than 50–60%, and never on products that are in high demand.
2. Suspicious or Misspelled Domain Name
Always check the full URL. Scammers register domains like amazon-dealstoday.com or paypa1.com. The brand name may be there, but the real domain is different.
3. No Contact Information
Legitimate businesses provide a phone number, email address and usually a physical address. A site with only a contact form and no other details is a serious red flag.
4. Poor Grammar and Spelling Errors
Scam sites are often quickly translated or written by non-native speakers. Frequent errors throughout the site — especially in legal pages — indicate a fraudulent operation.
5. Missing Legal Pages
Every legitimate site has a privacy policy, terms of use and a returns policy. If these are missing, vague or clearly copied from another site, do not trust the website.
6. Pressure Tactics and Fake Urgency
"Only 2 left in stock!", "Offer ends in 10 minutes" or "Act now!" — fake scarcity and artificial urgency are manipulation tactics. If a site is pressuring you to act immediately, step back and verify it first.
7. Unusual Payment Methods
Be extremely cautious if a site only accepts bank transfers, gift cards, cryptocurrency or wire transfers. These payment methods offer no buyer protection and are commonly used by scammers.
8. No HTTPS
Any website asking for payment or personal information must use HTTPS. An HTTP site transmitting sensitive data is either incompetent or malicious. Use our SSL Checker to verify.
9. Recently Registered Domain
Scam sites are often very new — registered days or weeks before a big promotional campaign. Check domain age with a Whois lookup.
10. No Social Media Presence or Fake Reviews
Look for the brand on social media. A business with no presence or only recently created accounts is suspicious. Also beware of review pages that look identical and were all posted on the same day.