WVXU: 'Tis the season to get scammed
The winter holiday season is prime time for getting tricked online, says UC expert
Karl Langhorst, an adjunct professor in UC’s School of Criminal Justice, was a featured guest on a "Cincinnati Edition" panel discussion that focused on the need for heightened consumer awareness during the holiday season.
The segment went into great detail on the many ways that scammers take advantage of consumers, with the most common way being online shopping. For example, according to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) there are fake retail sites that never deliver the product — or it’s not as advertised —and holiday apps might offer a free chat with Santa…but have hidden fees or contain malware.
Regardless of the ploy, how customers pay for a product online can greatly determine whether they can get their money back after being scammed, Langhorst says.
“Each provider has a different way that they will work with you as it relates to getting a refund,” Langhorst says, referencing bank cards and other payment methods such as Venmo and PayPal.
The most secure form of payment is a credit card, he says, as debit cards are tied directly to your personal checking or savings account.
“With a credit card you have the ability to do a charge back…using a debit card you could set yourself up for a loss.”
Langhorst also calls attention to another way that consumers are losing out this holiday season: The "uptick” in delivery truck robberies. When that happens, he says the retailer may re-ship the item, but it might not make it for Christmas, or it might be out of stock entirely.
Langhorst was also recently interviewed by Spectrum News: Shoplifting on the rise nationally, but declining in Cincinnati.
Featured image at top: iStock Photo/damircudic
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