If the auction price seems too good to be true, it likely is. You should be very cautious before bidding or buying software and other products on reputable auction sites.

These crooks are getting smarter on convincing you, the buyer, in believing what you’re bidding or buying is from an outstanding seller rating. These cyber crooks found a way to give themselves outstanding, but artificial, seller ratings. To many buyers, everything looks legit. It is only when the buyer finds out that his or her software is pirated, or the prized collectible is a fake, that they discover the rip off.

The unfortunate thing about these crimes is that it hurts the trusted sellers who do this for a living.

If your online experience has been spoiled by a counterfeit product – especially software, one of the easiest items to fake – you can report it by visiting “The Business Software Alliance“.

Cyber Crime is on the rise and we all need to do our due diligence before ever committing to an online transaction.

Protect yourself with these tips:

CHECK THE VENDOR’S IDENTIFYING INFORMATION.

If the vendor is unfamiliar to you, look for an online and offline customer support contact, especially when shopping for software programs on auction sites.

TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS.

When purchasing software or other products online, if the price seems “too good to be true,” it probably is. Take special care to avoid sellers offering “backup” copies of software. This is a clear indication that the software is illegal. Also, be wary of compilations of software titles from different publishers on a single disk or CD.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK.

Look for a feedback section on the site and look for comments about the seller based on previous transactions. Look for a “trust mark” from a reputable organization, like BBBOnLine, to make sure the online retailer is reliable and has a proven track record of satisfying customers. If in doubt, conduct Web searches about the site in order to determine its legitimacy and check for a Better Business Bureau (BBB) report at www.bbb.org.

If you had a bad experience with online shopping, please share it with us.