Last Updated on November 14, 2020 by SCARS Editorial Team

Here’s How To Outsmart Criminals Abusing The Online Shopping Experience This Holiday Season

The biggest retail season of the year is around the corner, and you do not even need to leave the comfort of your home to participate.

But Neither Do The Criminals

Easy website design, increased social media traffic, and convenience has made buying and selling online products a pillar of the modern shopping experience. The COVID-19 pandemic has driven even more consumers to turn online to make purchases. For businesses, this trend poses both challenges and significant opportunities. More sales and more traffic all mean more revenue. But it also means more fraudFraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain (money or other assets), or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compensation) or criminal law (e.g., a fraud perpetrator may be prosecuted and imprisoned by governmental authorities), or it may cause no loss of money, property, or legal right but still be an element of another civil or criminal wrong. The purpose of fraud may be monetary gain or other benefits, for example by obtaining a passport, travel document, or driver's license, or mortgage fraud, where the perpetrator may attempt to qualify for a mortgage by way of false statements. A fraud can also be a hoax, which is a distinct concept that involves deliberate deception without the intention of gain or of materially damaging or depriving a victim. as criminals have even more opportunities to steal from both consumers and merchants. So how should retailers be prepared?

EuropolEuropol The European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, better known under the name Europol, formerly the European Police Office and Europol Drugs Unit, is the law enforcement agency of the European Union (EU) formed in 1998 to handle criminal intelligence and combat serious international organized crime and terrorism through cooperation between competent authorities of EU member states. The Agency has no executive powers, and its officials are not entitled to arrest suspects or act without prior approval from authorities in the member states. Based in The Hague, it comprised 1,065 staff as of 2016. WEBSITE LINK Launches #SellSafe Awareness Campaign

Through an awareness campaign launching today, law enforcement across 16 countries have teamed up with Europol’s European CybercrimeCybercrime Cybercrime is a crime related to technology, computers, and the Internet. Typical cybercrime are performed by a computer against a computer, or by a hacker using software to attack computers or networks. Centre (EC3) and the Merchant Risk Council to share practical advice on how to outwit criminals trying to abuse the online shopping experience.

This new awareness campaign is being conducted under the umbrella of the 2020 e-Commerce Action (eComm 2020) led by Europol and the Austrian CriminalCriminal A criminal is any person who through a decision or act engages in a crime. This can be complicated, as many people break laws unknowingly, however, in our context, it is a person who makes a decision to engage in unlawful acts or to place themselves with others who do this. A criminal always has the ability to decide not to break the law, or if they initially engage in crime to stop doing it, but instead continues. Intelligence Service  (Bundeskriminalamt). This year’s campaign has a special focus on e-merchants, helping them better identify fraud on their platforms and empowering them to take steps to protect their business and customers against such attacks.

Law enforcement as well as key retail partners (such as SCARSSCARS SCARS - Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. A government registered crime victims' assistance & crime prevention nonprofit organization based in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. SCARS supports the victims of scams worldwide and through its partners in more than 60 countries around the world. Incorporated in 2015, its team has 30 years of continuous experience educating and supporting scam victims. Visit www.AgainstScams.org to learn more about SCARS.) will share the messages of the campaign using the #SellSafe hashtag to reach the widest possible audience.
The threat posed by these criminals is very real: in the lead up to this campaign, a number of countries carried out operational actions which resulted in the arrest of 22 such e-fraudsters in the month of October alone.

Edvardas Šileris, Head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) said: “Peak season for cybercriminals and fraudsters is just around the corner. Often, businesses will not realise they have processed a fraudulent transaction until weeks or even months later. This is why e-commerce fraud is so dangerous – by the time all parties involve realise, it can be too late to find the criminal. That is why prevention is the best solution. Europol is working with its partners from policing and the private sector in this eComm2020 action to protect businesses and customers from such attacks.”

Bernhard Schafrath, Detective at the Austrian Criminal Intelligence Service, said: “Over the years, high street retailers have taken comprehensive measures to protect their businesses against theft, burglaries and the like. In the 21st century, online businesses need to take similar measures to protect themselves against threats such as fraud, phishing and parcel mules. The awareness campaign launched today draws on the experience of law enforcement investigations against fraudulent orders of various kinds, and aims to help merchants better recognise and address the security gaps on their platforms”.

 

 

How to protect your e-business

Taking your business online to the e-commerce world is a big step. There are a number of simple measures you can take to #SellSafe. Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre has put together some pointers to get you started:

• Know your product: some products are riskier to sell than others. For example, selling easily resalable small items that are already in demand is riskier than personally designed items.
• Know your customer: If you accept card payments and ship valuable goods to your customers, you would want to know who you are sending the items to, wouldn’t you?
• Establish a safe means of payment: Your card processor can advise you. Choosing a safe means of payment will limit the risk of fraud.
• Use a reliable delivery service: choose a delivery method where you can be sure of the professional handling of your merchandise and possible non-delivery dispute claims.

Stay Safe This Holiday Season

ScamsScams A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime -  is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost. and scammers are going to be everywhere!

Don’t Trust Anyone And Verify Everything!

 

 

TAGS: SCARS, Holiday Scams, Information About Scams, Anti-ScamScam A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime -  is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost., Scams, Scammers, Fraudsters, Cybercrime, Crybercriminals, Scam Victims,

 

 

 

 

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