Is This Website Legit? How to Check Before You Buy
Quick Answer
When shopping online, consumers regularly encounter websites they have never purchased from before. Knowing how to verify a site takes two to three minutes and requires no technical expertise.
What to Check Before You Buy
1. Look Up the Domain Age
A website's registration date is publicly available. Go to whois.domaintools.com and enter the store's domain name. The result shows when the domain was registered, who the registrar is, and in some cases the registrant's country.
2. Verify Contact Information
A legitimate online retailer publishes a physical address, a working phone number, and a customer service email address.
Steps to verify:
- Copy the physical address and search it in Google Maps
- Call the phone number during business hours
- Send a test email to customer service before purchasing
3. Search for Independent Reviews
Check the store name on platforms that aggregate buyer experiences independently of the store: Google Reviews, Trustpilot, the Better Business Bureau at bbb.org, and Reddit. Search the store name plus "review," "complaint," or "scam."
Reviews published only on the store's own website cannot be independently verified.
4. Check for HTTPS on the Checkout Page
HTTPS, visible as a padlock icon in the browser address bar, means the connection between your browser and the site is encrypted. It is a minimum requirement for any page where you enter payment details.
HTTPS confirms the connection is encrypted. It does not confirm the site itself is legitimate or that the operator is who they claim to be.
5. Read the Return and Refund Policy
A specific return policy states the return window in days, who pays return shipping, and how refunds are issued. To check whether a policy has been copied from another site: select a sentence from the policy, put it in quotation marks, and search it in Google. If the exact text appears on multiple unrelated sites, it was copied.
Quick Reference: What to Check
| Check | How to Do It | Red Flag |
|---|---|---|
| Domain age | whois.domaintools.com | Registered less than 6 months ago |
| Contact info | Call the number, test the email, map the address | No phone number, address does not exist |
| Independent reviews | Google, Trustpilot, BBB, Reddit | No reviews outside the store's own site |
| HTTPS | Look for padlock in browser address bar | No HTTPS on checkout page |
| Return policy | Read the full policy | Vague, absent, or text matches other unrelated sites |
| Prices | Compare to established retailers | Significantly below every other seller |
| Payment methods | Review checkout options | Wire transfer, gift cards, or cryptocurrency only |
Your Rights When a Purchase Goes Wrong
The FTC's Mail Order Rule requires online sellers to ship orders within the timeframe stated in their advertising, or within 30 days if no timeframe is stated. If a seller cannot meet that deadline, they must notify you and offer a full refund.
If a seller does not ship your order and does not respond to contact, you can dispute the charge with your credit card issuer under the Fair Credit Billing Act. Credit card disputes must be filed within 60 days of the statement date.
How to Report a Suspected Fraudulent Website
| Agency | How to Report | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| FTC | ReportFraud.ftc.gov | 1-877-382-4357 |
| FBI IC3 | IC3.gov | N/A (online only) |
| Google Safe Browsing | safebrowsing.google.com/safebrowsing/report_badware | N/A |
| Domain registrar | Found through WHOIS lookup | Varies |