For most of us, Amazon's Prime Day event is a prime day to pick up bargains. But for many unscrupulous people, it's also a prime day to profit from scams. Thieves come out of the woodwork to capitalize on big online shopping events like this, so before you dive into all the deals on July 16-17, you should take some extra precautions to avoid getting duped. Here's what we recommend:
Don't Get Phished
Phishing scams proliferate when Amazon has one of its deal days events. While Amazon is advertising deals, fake sites do the same, and they look very similar to legitimate ones. Links to them can come from emails and be found in search results. So instead of clicking on any link you might encounter, a good practice is to type Amazon.com directly into your browser (or use the official Amazon app) and search there to find the deal.
Likewise, lots of people will sign up for Amazon Prime memberships just to be able to take advantage of Prime Day deals. Part of the sign-up process is setting up a form of payment, and with such valuable information in play, scammers have devised all manner of clever ways to trick you into sharing it. For this reason, you should sign up for an Amazon Prime account only by typing Amazon.com directly into your browser, and then creating a new account or signing into an existing one. Find the Prime button in the Your Account section.
You shouldn't let your guard down after you've purchased your goods, either. After your order, you'll be eager to receive your packages, but if you get an email or text about an item with a delivery problem, do not click on it. This is a very common phishing scam that can look like it legitimately comes from the US Postal Service, UPS, Amazon, or some other shipper.
To see the status of your order, go directly to Amazon.com or the Amazon app, go into your account, and click on Your Orders. There you'll have all of the info you need, including links to tracking for anything that has shipped.
Reviews Are Not Always Reliable
Fake reviews are everywhere on Amazon. Be suspicious of short, generalized comments, whether positive or negative—particularly any that are excessively complimentary. You can use browser extensions like Fakespot and the site ReviewMeta to help you evaluate reviews.
When you're purchasing electronics, the best way to judge whether a product is worth buying is to look for an external review on a reliable site (say, the one you're on right now).
Membership Has Its Risks
One of the most common scams is an email or phone call that purports to be from Amazon telling you that your membership has expired or been canceled. If this happens to you, don't give out any information over the phone or click on any in an email. Instead, log in on Amazon.com and navigate to Accounts & Lists > Prime Membership. Under Amazon's navigation bar, you'll see your membership status and renewal date and can click on Manage Membership to make changes.
On the app, click on the person icon at the bottom, select Your Account, and scroll down to Manage Prime Membership. Click on it, and select Manage Membership.
Protect Your Packages
Thieves know to expect a bounty of unattended packages after Prime Day. You have a couple of options to lower the chances they'll be stolen.
You can have your packages arrive on a day of the week when you know you’ll be home by selecting that day as your Amazon Day. Go into your account and under Ordering and Shopping Preferences, click Amazon Day, and set your preferred day of the week. Then at checkout, choose to have your packages delivered on your Amazon Day.
You can also have your packages shipped to an Amazon Hub Locker or Counter nearby, where you can pick up your packages. A Locker is a secure, self-service container that is typically located in a supermarket, convenience store, or bank. A Counter is a counter at a retail location, such as a convenience store or pharmacy. When you check out, go to the shipping address, choose Your Pickup Locations, and then tap on Find a Pickup Location Near You. You’ll be able to select a Locker or Counter that’s nearby.