Trusted Shops
The best-known European shop seal – the only one with its own buyer protection.
What this seal checks
over 100 criteria across 6 areas
- Identity and reachability of the retailer (transparent provider details, quick contact)
- Secure, fully encrypted data transmission
- Transparent right of withdrawal and return policy (at least 14 days)
- Pricing including all delivery and additional costs, exclusion of problematic products
- Understandable ordering process and audited customer service (minimum rating of 4.0 stars)
- Ongoing monitoring of the company’s identity and solvency
The seal cannot be bought: a shop must meet the criteria and comply with them permanently; certification experts vet it before it is awarded.
How to check whether it's genuine
- 1Click the seal in the shop – it must lead to a certificate on a trustedshops domain.
- 2Check the status there: it must be “valid” and name the shop you visited.
- 3Alternatively, look the shop up directly in the Trusted Shops shop search.
A real certificate or just an image?
A genuine seal leads, on click, to a valid certificate that names exactly this shop. A fake, by contrast, is just a logo – with no working proof.
A genuine certificate sits on a trustedshops domain and shows the status “valid” (green) with reference to exactly this shop.
Trusted Shops – shop searchA typical case is the Trusted Shops logo as a plain image with no link, or a link that does not lead to a trustedshops certificate but to a third-party page. Expired or withdrawn certifications are also reused.
Quick check for any seal
These four points apply regardless of the provider.
Click on the seal
A genuine seal is always linked and leads to a certificate page at the provider. If the logo is just an image and not clickable, the most important proof is missing.
The certificate must name this shop
The destination page must explicitly show the shop you came from – with the matching domain. A generic “valid” with no reference to the specific shop is not enough.
Look it up in the official list
Every reputable provider keeps a public, searchable list of certified shops. If the shop is missing there even though it displays the seal, that is a clear warning sign.
Check the status and date
Check the certificate status (valid / revoked) and the date. Expired or revoked certificates do not count – nor do seals from programmes that no longer exist.
Context on this seal
Buyer protection
For certified shops, Trusted Shops buyer protection secures the payment – tiered from €100 (basic) through €2,500 up to €20,000 depending on the level, for a period of 30 to 120 days and regardless of the payment method.
Cost for merchants
Chargeable for retailers (packages from around €119/month according to the provider, tiered by revenue).
A paid seal is not proof of authenticity, but a signal of legitimacy.
Does a shop carry this seal – rightfully?
Our fake-shop check automatically detects seals without a valid certificate link – together with over 30 more trust signals.
Check a shop for freeMore trust seals
View all seals
DEActiveEHI „Geprüfter Online-Shop“
Shop certification
The first German online-shop seal – with the strictest catalogue of legal texts.
Seal explained
DEDiscontinuedTÜV Süd „s@fer shopping“
Shop certification
Caution: discontinued in 2021. An s@fer-shopping seal shown today is a warning sign.
Seal explainedHändlerbund „Käufersiegel“
Shop certification
A legally focused seal – audited by lawyers specialising in online law.
Seal explainedFakeshop AI has no business relationship with the seal providers mentioned here and is neither authorised nor commissioned by them. This overview is independent, editorial consumer information. All brand names, seal names and logos belong to their respective owners and are shown only for explanation and recognition. Information is provided to the best of our knowledge and without guarantee – the respective provider is always authoritative.