Unfortunately, there are more and more incidents of scamming happening designed to trick you into either sharing sensitive information (such as account passwords, financial information, etc.), downloading malware, or buying products that don’t exist. Creating fake websites is one way that scammers will try and extract important and sensitive information but there are a number of ways you can go about checking the legitimacy of a website and the company behind it. Here are 10 ways to check that a website is a legitimate business.
1 | Carefully Look at the Address Bar and URL
Be sure that the site is secured by looking at the address bar (URL) to see if there is an “s” in the URL, which should look like this “https://” to start with or has a lock symbol in the address bar. This does not guarantee against a scam site, but it shows that the site owner is using secured encryption processes to transfer data and protect itself from hackers.
2 | Check the Contact Page
Review the options for contacting the company. If you don’t see multiple options (phone, email, live chat, or physical address) then proceed with caution.
3 | Review the Company’s Social Media Presence
Most legitimate companies have some social media presence and activity. If you see the social media icons on their website, see if they actually link to a social media channel, and review the company reviews and see if you can find real employees of the company on LinkedIn.
4 | Double Check the Domain Name
Scammers will tend to create “similar” domain names to trick the user into thinking they are on a legit site, like Yah00.com or Amaz0b.net, making subtle changes that you may not even notice. Always double check the address bar to see if you have been redirected to a website that is not legitimate.
5 | Watch for Poor Grammar and Spelling
Legitimate company websites will take great care in having a professional looking site. An excess of spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors could mean the website went up quickly. Occasional typos on a website can happen, but excessive errors could mean you are not on a legitimate site.
6 | Verify the Website Privacy Policy
Data privacy laws and regulations require most websites to provide website visitors with policies and procedures on how their data is collected, used, protected, and stored. Most sites provide a web page or link to a document providing detailed information. Look for this information and read it carefully before providing any information or making any online purchases.
7 | Run a Virus Scan
An occasional ad or pop-up can occur on some websites, but excessive ad content that interferes with your review of the site or pushes you to click on links to be redirected to other websites could indicate a scam or unsecured site.
There are several free resources to scan for viruses, phishing, malware, and known scam sites:
8 | Simply, Google the Business Name
Type the website's name into a search engine and review the results. If the site in question is a hazard (or an illegitimate site), a cursory Google check will be enough to let you know.
9 | Validate the Site with Google Safe Browser Transparency Report
The Google Safe Browsing Transparency Report allows you to paste a URL into a field, and it gives you a report on whether you can trust that website.
10 | Too Good to be True
Though it is a common practice for some businesses to provide large price discounts on items to move inventory or promote a new product or service, if you find a site that offers an unbelievable deal, then think twice before continuing. If it appears too good to be true, then it may not be a legitimate business, however, there are organisations that will offer you something for free (like a free trial or complimentary gift) in order for you to experience their business or become interested in other products that they offer.
Is Search and Stay too good to be true? While Search and Stay have 0% commission charges for holiday accommodation owners and have no pay-per-booking charges this may seem to be too good to be true. In actual fact, it is because we value our holiday rental owners and unlike some OTAs and holiday booking sites, we see owners as our priority and have done what we can to reduce costs.
We do charge a small fee to guests when they book but this tends to be significantly less than other operators. We also offer additional products at a cost like a Channel Manager, for example, should holiday house owners choose to add these services when using the free booking platform.
Search and Stay is also committed to the highest level of privacy and security and you can be reassured that you and the guests staying in your holiday rental property can safely and securely enjoy any holiday experience booked through www.SearchandStay.com.