What to Do if You Have Been Scammed on the Internet

Getting scammed is always a terrible experience. There is a plethora of feelings you have to deal with after you realize you've been scammed. Anger is one of them and it probably gets the best of you in that moment. Shame is another one, and self-pity is almost unavoidable. Whether you've been tricked into buying a product that was never delivered to you, or into doing a job you'll never get paid for (which is what happened to me recently and the reason why I decided to write this post), scams are simply horrible as they reveal the cunning and selfish nature of men.

No matter how careful you are, those who are specialized in this kind of dirty affair are always one step in front of you and, after you are victimized by their actions, there is often nothing you can do.

Yet, every bad experience is a solid brick in our wall of personal knowledge and development. So, the least you can do after being scammed on the internet is to learn from this experience so that you'll be wiser next time and also help others keep similar trouble at bay.

Here are some tips to take into account if you have been or think you are the victim of a scam.

How to (try to) prevent getting scammed?

If you are about to make a purchase online, try to compare the price of your desired item with that of similar products. If the offer sounds better than common sense allows you to believe it could be, you are likely to enter a scam deal. You can't pay pennies and get golden standard goods. Extremely low prices and unrealistic offers are often a first warning sign.

Try to find out as much as you can about the company you want to purchase from: where is it based, does it have a website and social accounts, is it a legally registered firm, where are its headquarters?

See what others say about this product/company online. You don't have to play the detective's part and waste hours and hours, just do a simple google search using the name of the company and product and see if anyone else wrote something about it on forums or social media.

The same steps apply when you're about to make a deal with a company that promises you remote work. Before signing the contract (which you should read thoroughly), try to see what the internet has to say about your future employer. If you can find information about this company on job websites, forums or professional platforms such as Linked-in, try to dig in a little bit and see if the feedback is usually positive. If the company only has a website with little information about its history, staff or there is no contact page, you should be cautious. Also, if you want to check if the business is legal, there are multiple business directories and, in many countries, websites that are authorized by the authorities to publish legal information related to companies such as registration numbers and official address.

If you can't find any relevant info and the company seems rather weird or reluctant to give you to much details about your future activity, you can try to ask for an advance before you actually start working for them, just t make sure they are serious about you.

What to do after getting scammed?

First, try to report what happened to you directly to the company and settle things amicably. If they refuse to answer (which is what often happens), see what legal means you can resort to. Hiring a lawyer is probably the last thing on your mind and this is what these companies actually rely on. They know that most people can't afford a lawyer and a lawyer can't afford to take claims that are worth very little in terms of money as they would only waste time filing them. Moreover, people are usually afraid of going to court as the procedures are often lengthy and annoying and if you lose, you have to pay your lawyer's fee, the legal expenses and the other party's lawyer fee. But keep in mind that you don't necessarily have to get a lawyer in order to file a claim as in many cases, you can do it on your own. Also, if you can find other people that have been scammed by the same company, you can club together and find one legal expert who will be more willing to represent an entire group of people than one single individual. Also, some lawyers process their claims on a No Win - No Fee basis which means that you don't owe them anything unless they win your case. Finally, even if you are not going to actually file a claim against the company that scammed you, it's always worth telling them you are going to do it as they might give up and pay you back the money you are due just to avoid a legal action.

Another option is to report what happened to you to the authorities that regulate online fraud. These differ from country to country, but it is often possible to be able to do this by simply completing an online form.

If your misfortune was getting tricked by a company who refused to pay you for your services, try all the bove and also make sure you look for any clauses in your contract that refer to taking legal action against the company. Most probably, you will only be able to sue them in their own country of residence which might become a problem if you worked remotely for a company based abroad.

Whatever the case might be, legal counselling is probably the best option for you. But, again, if you can't afford it, try to look for alternative ways and see how your own country's laws protect you and whether it is possible for you to submit a complaint to any national or international authority.

Helping others

Talking about what happened to you will probably do you little good from a financial point of view, but it will at least help you relieve tension ... just like therapy.

However, sharing your experience might do a great deal of good to other people out there who are about to fall in the same trap. So, my personal opinion is that you should write about your experience and prevent others from dealing with the same company and getting scammed as well.

There are multiple ways you can share your story: post of social platforms, forums, related blogs. Someone will definitely read your words and benefit from your advice.