It may seem unlikely that an unscrupulous merchant can get away with ripping people off. One would think that they could simply be reported to the Better Business Bureau or another consumer protection agency. Unfortunately, people often make impulse purchases online without investigating the merchant. 

These merchants attract people with a huge discount on a popular item or exaggerated claims about a product. People may notice that the claims are excessive, but mistakenly think that if they are even half-true, the item would represent a significant value. The truth about scam artists is that if claims or guarantees are too good to be true, they are likely to be completely false. Seasoned scam artists don’t bother with mere exaggerations or half-truths. 

Once they have hooked potential customers, they will immediately ask for payment. Scammers are usually characterized by requesting payment aggressively and in an unusual manner. They may avoid asking for credit cards or Paypal which have means in place such as chargebacks to deal with online shopping scams. 

Instead, the scammer may ask to be paid in bitcoin, through a direct bank wire transfer a money order or a pre-loaded bank card. These methods are not as consumer-friendly as credit cards and Paypal because it is hard to get your money back, although experts can help you get a bank wire refund with some effort. The scammer may also ask to be paid in bitcoin or another cryptocurrency.

You may receive your order in terrible condition or you may not get it at all. When you try to complain to the merchant, the complaint may either fall on deaf ears, the merchant will block you, or seem to disappear.