MEMPHIS, Tenn. —
In an increasingly online world, scammers are becoming more direct and convincing in their attempts to trick you, especially during the holiday season as shopping, particularly online shopping increases.
THE QUESTION
Can a company ask for additional money or personal information after an online purchase is complete?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, a company can’t ask for additional money or personal information after an online purchase is complete.
WHAT WE FOUND
Ordering online is for some the most convenient and easiest way to take advantage of holiday sales and a lot of people use their cell phones to make those purchases.
The Mid-South Better Business Bureau warned in their podcast, "The Voice of Trust", “When you’re on your phone as opposed to a computer you can’t see the full URL," the BBB said. "It’s truncated and so, you don’t even know if you’re on a real website or a fake website, or a look-like website, especially if you’re clicking on links from social media. Right? So, you be really careful just because you think you’re on a website double-check; don’t trust links. And watch for bad grammar. We call that ‘scammer grammar’.”
The goal of a scammer is to get a hold of your personal information and possibly your money and now instead of doing this pre-order some are doing it post-order, through shipping and tracking.
“Obviously as more people are online shopping and there are millions and millions of packages out there being delivered this is the time that people start getting those phishing, those phishy, phishing text messages, and emails and phone calls," the BBB said. "No legitimate business or organization is ever going to contact you and request payment or personal information for a package in transit already; bar none.”