BBB Warns Against Craigslist Ads Offering BBB Buyer's Protection
BBB has received calls from consumers all across the U.S who were shopping for items on Craigslist and came across ads claiming that the seller was accredited by BBB. After inquiring about the items, the prospective customers received an email stating that the seller was accredited by BBB and that they were a participant in the BBB Protection Program. This supposed program would protect the buyer should they not receive the items they paid for.
In truth, there is no such thing as a BBB Protection Program. BBB has learned of two websites that are fraudulently using the BBB logo, overstockshop.biz and overstocksales.org. These sites have stolen images to mimic the layout and design used by BBB.
"Consumers look for BBB Accredited Businesses and the BBB seal when evaluating the trustworthiness of businesses because the logo tells them that the business lives up to BBB's rigorous standards," said BBB President Jim Hegarty. "Unfortunately, some businesses and scammers will lie to customers and falsely claim that they are accredited by BBB. Therefore it's important to verify BBB accreditation at the source, bbb.org."
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reported receiving 275,284 complaints, more than a 33 percent increase from 2007, with a total dollar loss from all fraud cases of $264.6 million. And scams involving non-delivered merchandise and/or payment were by far the most reported offense, comprising nearly 33 percent of all complaints. "These numbers are alarming," stated Hegarty "and all the more reason for consumers to use extreme caution when making purchasing decisions."
The scamming sellers use more than a dozen names including, Emma Lawley, Hollie West, Claudia Curtis, Mallory Downs, Stephanie Bradford, Elizabeth Stanford, Kristine Gilmore, and Linda Koller and have created a fake BBB reliability report for each phony identity which is linked from-and hosted on-the scammer's websites.
BBB contacted the Web hosting company of overstockshop.biz, which suspended the scammer's site. Since then, the scammers have set up shop at overstocksales.org and BBB is taking steps to have that site taken down as well.
BBB offers the following advice for verifying a company's accreditation:
· Businesses will often post the BBB Accredited Seal on their website to show customers that they meet and uphold BBB's standards. To verify accreditation, consumers should click on the BBB logo which will redirect them to either a confirmation page or the company's reliability report hosted on the BBB website.
· Don't just take a business's word for it. Visit bbb.org and review the BBB Reliability Report and rating from BBB, as well as additional information on the business's management and complaint history.
· Consumers who believe a business is fraudulently claiming BBB accreditation should notify their BBB and file a complaint either via letter, online at bbb.org or call
800-649-6814.
For more advice on how to avoid scams online and find trustworthy businesses, visit bbb.org.