I’ve never been one to get hooked to shopping online but I can certainly share the excitement that McChef had when he started going to eCommerce websites like eBay or PlayAsia to buy video games. He and my sis certainly share that “hobby” together as she too likes to shop online for her Japanese DVDs.
Unfortunately for McChef, he had to experience the ugly side of eBay: fraud. Last year my sis wanted to buy a limited edition PSP, which was sold out in most retail shops. Ever the nice guy, McChef decided to look for the item on eBay. He managed to find a seller and after reading other people’s comments about that particular seller (which was mostly good), he made the purchase.
Only, the PSP never got to us. And that started our nightmare. We lodged a police report, lodged a report on eBay, lodged a bank report (which led us to know that the seller was part of an online scam because his bank account was empty and his last transaction was made in another state). McChef did receive reimbursement from eBay but only half of what he paid for the PSP.
That was the problem. We didn’t know which seller to trust. We were not able to make informed online shopping decisions because there weren't anything else to help us other than the comments and ratings left by other people (who also turned out to be part of a scam group).
Thankfully now there are better ways to protect ourselves when we shop online. The buySAFE Shopping Advisor is a FREE browser plug-in that enables people like you and me to shop online safely and securely.
What is does is that it enables Retail Websites to display a meaningful trust signal (the buySAFE Seal) backed with a broad guarantee. Merchants who qualify to use the buySAFE Seal have passed the buySAFE Business Inspection, which ensure the merchant is trustworthy, reliable and committed to delivering on the terms of the sale. These merchants can then display the buySAFE Seal on item listings, which tells us buyers purchases are automatically protected with a bond guarantee of up to $25,000 and identity theft insurance. Additionally, all buySAFE Bonded Merchants agree to allow buySAFE to continuosly monitor their performance. This ensures a virtually risk-free shopping experience.
Unfortunately for McChef, he had to experience the ugly side of eBay: fraud. Last year my sis wanted to buy a limited edition PSP, which was sold out in most retail shops. Ever the nice guy, McChef decided to look for the item on eBay. He managed to find a seller and after reading other people’s comments about that particular seller (which was mostly good), he made the purchase.
Only, the PSP never got to us. And that started our nightmare. We lodged a police report, lodged a report on eBay, lodged a bank report (which led us to know that the seller was part of an online scam because his bank account was empty and his last transaction was made in another state). McChef did receive reimbursement from eBay but only half of what he paid for the PSP.
That was the problem. We didn’t know which seller to trust. We were not able to make informed online shopping decisions because there weren't anything else to help us other than the comments and ratings left by other people (who also turned out to be part of a scam group).
Thankfully now there are better ways to protect ourselves when we shop online. The buySAFE Shopping Advisor is a FREE browser plug-in that enables people like you and me to shop online safely and securely.
What is does is that it enables Retail Websites to display a meaningful trust signal (the buySAFE Seal) backed with a broad guarantee. Merchants who qualify to use the buySAFE Seal have passed the buySAFE Business Inspection, which ensure the merchant is trustworthy, reliable and committed to delivering on the terms of the sale. These merchants can then display the buySAFE Seal on item listings, which tells us buyers purchases are automatically protected with a bond guarantee of up to $25,000 and identity theft insurance. Additionally, all buySAFE Bonded Merchants agree to allow buySAFE to continuosly monitor their performance. This ensures a virtually risk-free shopping experience.
The buySAFE Shopping Advisor also provides Safe Shopping Ratings on more than 320,000 eCommerce sites in the search results of Google, Yahoo, MSN and eBay.
So guys, if you love to shop online, no harm in downloading this FREE buySAFE application. Afterall, isn’t it better to equip yourself with tools that can help you make safe and informed online shopping decisions?
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9 Your say:
Aiks! FRAUD! Don't scare me! I shop online!
Many thanks for the useful tips!!!!
I gotta warn my bimbo sister who is Ebay's shopping queen. She buys almost everything under the sun including her Victoria Secret undies. O yeah, she lives in London, so it's cheaper to shop online.
great tips perky! me too, i've never been hooked to online shopping i'm so afraid of giving out credit card info.
thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. ;)
cheers
I think I've only ever bought 3 things online in my entire life ... LOL!
Savante:
Then u better take precautions when shopping online. Installing the plug-in is one step :)
Twilight Zone:
Yeah u better warn her. We kena once already & that one time was enough. I've practically blacklisted shopping on ebay bcoz of it (i'm sure it's relatively safe to shop there, but I'm just an extremist hehehe).
Liza:
You can opt to use PayPal instead of using your credit cards online. It's safer...
N thanx for stopping by too! :)
Nick Phillips:
Lol! Well good for you. Wow, you've got some serious self-restraint. I've got friends who buy almost everything online hahaha!
wel...jus when i thought of gettin into the pool of online shopping.
:P
perky saves the day!!...
Of since late, i have also started engaging in online shopping since a few of my frens are now in business of selling clothes online AND i am living in a city (seriously!) where the only CD shop we have here is Speedy and IT stores selling pirated copies. Anyway, Thanks for this hot tip babe, maybe now i can try scout for stuff on Amazon/Ebay/Lelong with ease. BTW, Check out www.strawberrynet.com for cosmetics shopping (my collegue swore by it). Cross finger that my SKII will reach my mail in 2 days time! cheerios
...nishanth...
Better to be safe than sorry ey! :)
Fede:
If you're always shopping online, it would also be good to have a Paypal account. Avoid giving out your credit card numbers whenever making online purchases.
Hope you get your SKII soon!
Nice post..! Well, this advisor is really very effective for safe and secure online shopping.
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