Easy ways to check if a website is legit or a scam

Table of Contents

Analyze the address bar and URL carefully

Check the address bar (URL) to see whether there is an “s” in the URL, which should appear like this “https://” to begin with, or if there is a lock symbol in the address bar. This does not ensure that the site is not a scam, but it does demonstrate that the site owner uses safe encryption techniques to share data and guard it from scammers.

Inspect the Domain name twice

Scammers will often construct “similar” domain names, to deceive users into believing they are on an honest site, making small alterations that you might not remember. Always check the address bar to realize whether you’ve been moved to a fraudulent website.

Check the Domain Age

It is easy to determine the age of a website domain. Verifying a site’s age gives you trust that it has been in operation for an extended period of time. Scam and fraudulent sites usually have a brief presence since they are found and removed by legitimate company site owners.

Use the domain tracker to find out who owns the domain name, where they are located, and how long the website has been active.

Look at the Contact Page

Check your contact choices with the company. Move with caution if you do not see multiple options (phone, email, live chat, or physical address).

Check the social media presence

The majority of genuine businesses have a presence on social media and activities. If you see social media icons on their web page, check to see if they genuinely link to a social media channel, and read the company reviews to see if you can locate real employees on LinkedIn.

Check the poor English on the website

If you see a high number of misspelled (or missing) words, poor language, or difficult phrasing, you should doubt the site’s credibility.

Even if the site in question is technically valid in the sense that it is not a hoax, any grammatical errors will throw doubt on the accuracy of its material, making it a poor source.

Keep an eye out for intrusive advertising

If your chosen site has an unusually big amount of adverts overwhelming the page or ads that continuously play audio, it is unlikely to be reliable. Consider searching elsewhere if you come across any of the following sorts of ads:

Ads that fill the entire page
Ads that need you to complete a survey (or some other activity) before proceeding
Advertisements that take you to another page
Advertisements that are explicit or provocative

Check the website privacy policy

Most websites are required by data privacy laws and regulations to offer visitors guidelines and policies governing how personal data is collected, used, safeguarded, and kept. Most websites give a web page or a link to documentation that contains thorough information. Before providing any information or making any online purchases, look for this information and carefully read it.

Conduct a Virus Scan

Some websites may contain an unusual ad or pop-up, but extensive ad material that interrupts your evaluation of the site or forces you to click on links to be sent to other websites may suggest fraud or an insecure site.

Conduct your research

A quick web search for the company’s reviews will reveal a lot about the company. Examine how current the reviews are and whether the company provides proactive responses.

Follow these steps to check company legit or a scam before use. If you are a victim of a scam website, take help from the Scam Helpers website. File a complaint against scam websites or scammers to get your money back. Fill out a complaint form on our Scam Helpers website and take help from our experts in the fund recovery process.