Protecting yourself from fraudulent sellers

by Tekle Sebhatu

Question:

I am also interested in learning HOW TO protect yourself and your company from fraudulent sellers. I can see there are hundreds of different companies throughout the wholesale and manufacturing worldwide arena. Any quick and simple tips on “covering your bases”, so to speak? Asking for some specific kind of documentation or information? Thanks.

Answer:

Dear dylan9: I don’t think there are quick and simple tips to avoiding fraudulent sellers. They must be taken seriously and handled with caution. Here are few suggestions that might help you from getting burned:

1. Educate yourself on the different types of scams, what scammers are looking and what scamming is all about. There is more to it than you might think.
2. Be patient and don’t make quick decisions, that is what exactly scammers want you to do, for you to make fast irrational decision.
3. Use common sense. Look for red flags, including requests for personal identification, fund transfer and paying in advance for goods.
4. Don’t be greedy. Scammers love greedy people, remember the old saying “if it looks too good to be true, it probably is!”
5. Be skeptical. It is good business. Read e-mails and faxes sent to you by strangers carefully and don’t respond right away. Give it some thought.

Visit the following sites to learn more about scams.

• Looks To Good to Be True.com
• Rip-off Report.com
• Federal Trade Commission

This topic will be explored further in the coming weeks.