Is this site legit? How do I check if a site is legit or trying to be a scam? (2023)

Learn how to verify or verify if a website is legitimate or trying to scam you.

Did you know that hackers attack everyone39 secondshalf?? Well, if that wasn't enough, a staggering 56% of Americans don't know what to do in the event of an attack.

Shockingly, 64% of them have also never checked if their data has ever been compromised. This is extremely dangerous because if criminals have access to your sensitive data, they can maliciously use it to compromise your identity.

As a result, customers will leave your site and this will have a negative impact on the financial services you will need in the future. So how can I check if a website is legit?

we'll find out below. Read.

Is this site legit? How to check if a website is legit?

If you are concerned about the legitimacy of a website you have visited, one of the questions that will undoubtedly come to mind is; 'Is this site legit?' Now, there are many red flags of fraudulent sites that should immediately tell you that the site you accessed is not safe.

Here are some tips on how to check if a site is legit.

#1. Check the trust seal of the site

Trust seals are designed to show end users that the website they are browsing is safe. You will usually find them on pages like the home page, checkout pages, login pages, etc.

A site stamp comes withan SSL certificateissued by acertificate authority (CA). A site seal shows that the site is verified and legitimate.

To be 100% sure that the site is legitimate, click on the security seal. It will open to display verified information confirming that the SSL certificate used on the website is working properly. A website seal provides details about the type of SSL certificate, company address, email, phone number, domain ownership, etc.

So don't just look for a trust seal, because a motivated criminal can also download the images of the security seal and place them on your website. Click on the seal to also confirm its legitimacy.

#two. Does the site have the lock with HTTPS? Did you see the certificate details?

#3. Does the site have a contact page?

If you've ever wondered how to tell if a site is legit, the lack of a contact page on the site is an instant red flag. A legitimate business website will always have a dedicated contact page that users of that website can use to contact them quickly.

If the business has a phone number listed on the Contact Us page, please call it to verify that it works. On that same note, please confirm that the email ID listed is also legitimate by sending them an email. It must be delivered.

Finally, the email should not be generic either, but be related to the company brand, for example (name@company.com).

#4. Company available on social networks

Online presence is a critical aspect of any business. It serves as social proof that “real” people work in a company. Fake business scam websites often have icons for popular social networking sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter on their web pages, but the links on those icons do not lead to real accounts.

Be careful when clicking on those links too. To confirm that the links used with the icons are legitimate, hover over the icon or right-click on it to see the link it points to.

If you are using a mobile phone, long press the icon to open options like copy link and open URL in new tab etc. The exact URL the icon directs you to will also appear there.

You can also check the online reviews on social media platforms and check if the company employees are also on trusted platforms like LinkedIn etc.

#5. Do not click links in the body of an email

According to thisreport, more than 50% of thePhishing attack emailsThey come with malicious links that lead to malware. So, beware of emails that force you to click links to the point of threatening to block/suspend your account if you don't.

Additionally, professional emails from name brands do not refer to you as a customer or member, but instead refer to you by name. Therefore, if you receive a link in any email that you suspect is malicious, never click on it.

Always check email addresses and confirm that the email you received is from a trusted sender and, for example, unless you have submitted a request to reset your password while managing your account, please ignore the links and emails you receive .

#6. Check for spelling or grammatical errors

There are two main reasons why scam emails or websites have a lot of grammatical errors. Either they are trying to filter out those who are not gullible enough to fall for their traps, or they are hastily writing emails or website content to fool unsuspecting people.

Also, most legitimate brands spend a lot of time and effort to ensure that the information coming from them is 100% accurate in terms of grammar and the information they are trying to convey.

Unless there is a compelling reason to believe that the website or an email with some grammatical errors is from your trusted company, there is no reason to respond to these emails, accept offers or share your sensitive data on these websites.

If you are still not sure, use the free fake website checker tools to confirm whether the website is legitimate or not.

#7. Use the Google Safe Browsing Transparency Report

That is fast. If you suspect that a specific website is questionable/malicious, use theGoogle Safe Browsing Transparency Reporting Toolto check if this site is safe to browse and if there is any malware on it.

#8. Find a website privacy policy

What does the site's privacy policy say? Different states and industries have pre-defined data privacy laws and regulations that explain how they collect user data, how they use it, and let users know how the data is processed, protected, and maintained.

If you're on a new website, check to see if they have privacy policies and see how they collect, store and use your data as well. For e-commerce platforms, make sure you understand the shipping and return policies on your website to ensure they are valid.

#9. Pay close attention to the URL

Scammers have also been known to manipulate website URLs to resemble those of reputable brands. They achieve this mainly with the help of subdomains.

This trick can be a bit hard to spot due to the way web browsers handle Unicode domains. It is simple; Copy and paste the URL into a new tab and see how the URL appears.

Here are some tips to check.

If the domain name imitates established brands, for example, Amaz0n instead of Amazon or PayPal with a capital i instead of PayPal with a lower case (L).
If the domain has many hyphens or symbols.

You can also use a website scam checker to verify that the website is legitimate.

#10. Know the obvious signs of website malware

Here are some obvious signs of website malware:

Lots of popups. They can be very annoying at times.
Advertising banners were spread everywhere.
Ads/links that trick you into clicking on them.

Usually these links direct you to other malicious websites or start downloading malware from the website to your device. The best advice is to avoid them.

#eleven. See reviews online

When dealing with any website, you should check their comments or comments posted on social media platforms, applications (if applicable) and the website itself. This will give you a clear idea about the actual existence of the company. To do this, you need to write the name of the site along with 'comments' and you will have proof of the authenticity of the site. Customers often share their experiences with the company's products and services.

#12. Payment Methods

A legitimate website will not hide anything about the payment process from the customers. A website clearly states this in its payment and data privacy policy. The site never asks for payment by gift card, bank transfer via Western Union, PayPal address, etc. If the website has any valid payment sources as mentioned, then it is a clear sign that the website is not genuine. You should avoid browsing these sites.

#13. WHOIS record

WHOIS is a protocol that stores user databases, it also stores the name of an organization, domain name, IP address. WHOIS works like an online phone book, providing information in a readable format. If you want to investigate the site, first check the WHOIS record which will give you a valid and registered company email address, address and phone number. If there is anything unusual between the WHOIS record and the actual information on the website, you may be visiting a fake website.

In addition, you can also check website security by using tools and services like Virus Total and Norton Safe Web to scan suspicious website URLs and check if they are safe.

#14. Use the legitimate website verification tool

If you don't want to perform the manual website legitimacy check, you can check the website's fidelity with the website legitimacy check tools below.

Conclusion

This is how you know if a website is legitimate. We hope that the tips listed in this guide will help you spot fake websites in the future.

You can bookmark this guide so you can revisit it as many times as you want, so you don't forget a tip on any day and fall victim to an online scam.

Related topics:

Symmetric vs. Asymmetric Encryption: Know the Difference
How to redirect HTTP to HTTPS using .htaccess?
How much does an SSL certificate cost??
TLS vs SSL - Know the difference