You see how we know
Every point shows its source and the day we checked.
- Commercial register
- Registration data
- Warning lists
Is this online shop legit?
Check it before you pay.
Paste the shop’s address or a product link. You’ll see what counts against it and what counts for it, each with its source and check date. Even if it isn’t on any warning list.
Free, no sign-up. 40 check modules look at the legal notice and commercial register, payment methods, domain age, server location, reviews and public warning lists.
What the shop says
It all sounds good.
- 4.9 out of 5 starsfrom more than 2,000 reviews
- Here for you since 2009Your specialist retailer online
- Verified retailerwith a seal in the page footer
What we find
Not much of it holds up.
Trust score 14 out of 10014
beispiel-shop.invalidDanger*Several serious warning signs at once
- No reviews outside the shopSource: Review platforms
- Domain registered 11 days agoSource: Domain registration data
- Seal not listed with the issuerSource: Issuer’s directory
Fictional example.
Four places where a fake shop slips up
We go through the shop’s site point by point. You see where something is off and how we know.
DeliveryContactLegal notice
−70%
PrepaymentBank transfer
Verified shop
- Legal notice without an addressWarning sign. Source: Shop pages
- Price far below the usualWarning sign. Source: Shop page
- Prepayment and bank transfer onlyClear warning sign. Source: Shop’s payment page
- Seal not listed with the issuerClear warning sign. Source: Issuer’s directory
VerdictDanger*
Fictional example: invented shop, invented warning signs.
Where fake shops give themselves away
There are eight places where a fake shop can give itself away. For each one you see what we check, how we know and what it can’t tell you. Behind them are 40 check modules. Not every module runs on every site: if it isn’t a shop, the checkout checks are skipped, for example.
Group 1 of 8
Legal notice and provider
Does the shop have a legal notice, and does it contain the mandatory details? We also check whether terms, withdrawal notice and privacy policy can be reached, whether contact details and return address fit together, and whether the legal texts match the provider’s country.
SourceShop pages, section 5 DDG
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- A missing or incomplete legal notice is a clear warning sign. A complete one is a legal requirement for every shop and no reason yet to trust it.
- What it can’t tell you
- We cannot tell from the text alone whether the stated address belongs to the operator.
Group 2 of 8
Commercial register and VAT ID
We look up the company from the legal notice in the commercial register and compare name, registered office and register number with the entry. We also check whether the VAT identification number is valid.
Sourcehandelsregister.de, OpenRegister
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- Fake shops copy the company data of existing businesses. A valid number alone therefore proves nothing. If the company does not match the entry, the result says so, together with the entry we found.
- What it can’t tell you
- Sole traders without a registration duty and many foreign companies are not in any of these registers. This point then reads “Unclear”.
Group 3 of 8
Domain, server and encryption
We read when the domain was registered and whether its name imitates a known brand. On top of that come the targets of redirects, where the server is and who runs it, the connection’s certificate and the domain’s mail records.
SourceWHOIS, RDAP, server certificate
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- A shop with a large range on a domain only a few weeks old stands out. A certificate is standard today and free. It shows that the connection is encrypted. It doesn’t show who is behind it.
- What it can’t tell you
- Many registries do not disclose the creation date or the holder. Behind a content network such as Cloudflare we do not see the actual server.
Group 4 of 8
Payment methods and money flow
We record which payment methods the shop offers and which are left at the end of the order. Is one with buyer protection among them? Does the recipient account match the provider?
SourceShop pages, approved reports
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- If only prepayment by bank transfer is left, that is one of the clearest single warning signs. A transfer can hardly be recalled.
- What it can’t tell you
- We do not place orders. What a shop only asks for by email after the order, we do not see.
Group 5 of 8
Warning lists and security services
We match the domain against public fake-shop warning lists and against directories of phishing and malware.
SourceWatchlist Internet, consumer advice centres and others
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- An entry on a fake-shop warning list carries a lot of weight. An entry as a “problematic shop” is not the same as a confirmed fraud warning. We keep the two apart.
- What it can’t tell you
- A shop only gets onto a list once someone has reported it. A new shop is on none. That is why we check everything else regardless.
Group 6 of 8
Reviews and reputation
We look for review profiles on independent platforms, reports about the shop on the web and the social media profiles it links to.
SourceTrustpilot, Trusted Shops, web search
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- When many people consistently report that the goods never arrived, that is a strong warning sign. Few reviews are normal for small shops and not a warning sign on their own.
- What it can’t tell you
- Reviews can be bought. If there are none at all, we know nothing about other people’s experiences.
Group 7 of 8
Trust seals
If the shop shows a seal, we check whether it links to its issuer and whether the certificate was issued for this shop.
SourceVerification pages of the seal issuers
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- A seal in the footer is, to begin with, an image. If it leads to no matching certificate, we treat that as an attempt to deceive.
- What it can’t tell you
- No seal is not a warning sign; most honest shops have none. And a genuine seal does not replace looking at everything else.
Group 8 of 8
Content and connections
We look at how much original content the site has and whether the texts look machine-assembled. Do prices look unrealistically low, or are there permanent extreme discounts? A language model judges this from the text of the site; we do not compare prices with other retailers. Does the site resemble a fake shop we already know, or show a known scam pattern?
SourceThe page itself, language model, our own records
More in the methodology- What it means for you
- If a shop resembles a fake shop we already know, that is often the earliest hint, long before it is on any list. We do not publish what we compare, as it could otherwise be deliberately bypassed.
- What it can’t tell you
- Language models can be wrong. What they find therefore never counts on its own and always appears in the result with a reason.
Address in, verdict out
Four steps. You only do the first and the last.
Paste the address
Copy the shop’s address or a link to a product. You don’t need an account.
We fetch the public data
The shop’s pages, the domain’s registration, the commercial register, warning lists and review platforms.
We sort what we find
Counts against the shop, counts for it, or couldn’t be checked. Each with its source and check date.
You decide
The verdict and the trust score are at the top, the reasons below, the weightiest first. Whether you order is up to you.
The shop isn’t on any warning list?
We check it anyway.
What we could not check is in there too
If something couldn’t be checked, we say so. A gap is not a warning sign and not an all-clear.
- Legal noticechecked
- Reviewsnot verifiable
- Payment methodsnot verifiable
We don’t wait for the first report
A shop only lands on a warning list once someone has noticed it. We check what is on its site and in the registers.
On no warning list.
Checked all the same, using 40 modules.
The verdict on top.
The reasons below.
beispiel-sport.invalid
87 / 100
Trust score · No major warning*
Not a recommendation and not a guarantee. The verdict holds for the day of the check. Pay with buyer protection where you can.
- Company found in the commercial register, registered office matches the legal notice
- Domain registered for 9 years
- Pay by invoice or PayPal
Example results with invented addresses.
A shop can claim anything.
We check it.
Register matchesLegal noticeDomain agefor 11 daysWarning listsCertificate validRight of returnTerms and conditions present
Payment methodsCommercial registerSeal confirmedReviewsVAT IDprepayment onlyPrice levelContact details
Server locationRegistered office differsTrust sealAccount holderfor 9 yearsRight of withdrawalAddress missingRedirects
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Scams that police and consumer advice centres are warning about right now, and how to spot them.
Current scams in October 2026: what is going around
What police and consumer advocates reported in September, with warning signs and next steps.
14 min read
Cash-on-delivery parcel: refuse it and do not pay
The courier wants cash for a parcel you did not order or that comes from a shop you do not trust.
8 min read
Fake shops from a kit: networks and the .shop ending
Around 119,000 identically built shops belong to one network, nearly all with the .shop ending.
11 min read
Before you buy. And after.
Before you order
If you’ve already paid
- Paid and nothing arrivedWhat to do now, in this order: bank, payment provider, police report.
- Get your money backWhat works with PayPal, credit card, direct debit and bank transfer.
- Reporting officesWhere to report a fake shop and file a police report.
- Report a shop to usYour report feeds into our check.
Plus three tools
A warning while you browse, preserved evidence and the check for your own software.
- Not in any store yet
Browser extension
Open a page that is on our warning list and you see a warning before you enter data or pay there. The comparison runs in your browser.
It is not public in any store yet.
More - Web archive, PDF, checksums
Evidence preservation
Once the shop is gone, so is your proof. For shops on a warning list or with the verdict Danger we therefore try to preserve the pages. Every file gets a SHA-256 checksum, so anyone can recalculate whether it has been changed.
More - POST /api/check
API for developers
Build the check into your own software. You get the same as on the website: verdict, trust score and the reasons.
More
How do I check if an online shop is fake?
Paste the shop’s address or a product link into the field at the top and press “Check shop”. The result lists what counted against the shop and what counted for it, each with its source and check date.
Is this website a scam? How can I tell?
No check can prove that a shop is honest or a scam. Ours shows warning signs and points in the shop’s favour, such as a missing legal notice, prepayment only, a very new domain, entries on warning lists and reviews. The more serious signs add up, the more strongly we advise against ordering. Read the reasons, not only the verdict.
Is there a list of fake shops?
Yes. Our warning list holds addresses that a list we evaluate warns about or that our check rated “Danger”. Every entry shows its reasons and check date. A shop that isn’t on the list can still be fraudulent, so check the address before you pay.
Is the check free?
Yes. The shop check and the warning list cost nothing. You don’t need an account and you won’t see ads. Services for businesses pay for the running costs. No shop can buy a better verdict; it depends only on what the check finds.
What does the shop check examine?
40 check modules look at, among other things, the legal notice and commercial register, payment methods, domain age, server location, legal pages, reviews, trust seals and entries on public warning lists. For every point we were able to check, the result says what we found.
Is the result a purchase guarantee?
No. The check is automated. It shows what counted against the shop on the day of the check, what counted for it and what we couldn’t check. Whether you order is your decision. Read the reasons, look at the check date and, where you can, pay in a way that lets you get your money back.
Does “No major warning” mean I can order without concern?
No. “No major warning” means that the automated check found no serious warning signs. That is not a recommendation or guarantee. Look at the check date and, where you can, use a payment method with buyer protection.
Can I paste a product link?
Yes. Paste the link into the field. We check the shop the page belongs to. We don’t rate the individual product.
How current is a check result?
Every result page shows the date of the latest full check. If a domain has since become unreachable or is only parked, the page says so. Shops change, so every result holds for the day of the check.
What should I do if I have already paid?
Call your bank or payment provider first, as some deadlines are short. Then keep the order confirmation, proof of payment and screenshots of the shop, and report it to the police. “Already paid” in the menu lists the steps for each payment method.