I’m not sure whether to take this as a compliment or not, but Jonathan Ward London has been privy to its first online scam. I guess this means that I have a very desirable product that someone couldn’t live without… Or they found a loophole in my security system. Lets say for arguments sake its a combination of both !

A short while ago a selection of products were ordered online (this is not unusual as we frequently receive orders each week). I sent the order out promptly with a handwritten note, which I try to do with all new clients and a votive of another fragrance, another personal touch that is important to me.

The client received the order and then to my horror, issued a charge-back within a few days of receiving it (our first charge-back in 2 years of trading), and his reason…? He didn’t authorize the card. It really is that easy. Apparently if you are predisposed to thievery and deception, you can make a charge-back and the credit card company will air on the side of the consumer, NOT the vendor or manufacturer. If the thief has taken measures to use a false collection address, its virtually impossible to trace.

So I couldn’t believe it was that easy to be scammed ! I decided to call Pay-Pal and ask about my options. Well, they are very limited to be fair. Pay-Pal currently offer me low protection on my current service level with a monthly fee. After speaking to one of their advisers, I was informed that they could help me by offering a more secure service (at a premium cost) but it still wasn’t guaranteed ! At this point, I started to feel more than a little bit frustrated. I had been cheated, okay, scammed. Now – the solutions available to me made me feel like I was being cheated again.

While these conversations were progressing, and not successfully, I received another order for a similar amount. By this point I had already “smelled the coffee” as it were and decided to take a few steps to make myself feel more secure about sending products out. i looked online at the shipping address attached to the order. It sounded lovely actually, but on closer inspection using Google’s nifty little photographic street maps, the sweet cottage I had visualized actually was a grungy run down tower block that Google Maps would only show from another street looking between two houses. So now I decided to take an action. I contacted the buyer and asked for her home phone number so I could verify the order, funnily enough she didn’t get back to me (and still hasn’t).

I decided to call the Metropolitan police as now I felt that I was being targeted by a gang. They were very helpful and supportive, but also very honest in letting me know that this happens everyday, and as the amount in question was relatively small, they couldn’t offer me the support that they would like to give. In other words, they wouldn’t investigate further. I did have a lengthy conversation with them and adding some notes from my experience, below is a checklist of points that may help in avoiding similar scams to your business.

• Online thieves will often create false addresses through companies like Mail-Box ETC, the address can be a play on the Mail Box office’s “actual” address, they may use Suite 218, or Studio 218, then the Mail box address / so you could be fooled into thinking its an apartment or office suite. You can print out all Mail Box Offices in London (or business’s of this nature) relatively easily and keep them at hand to cross check in case something feels odd.
• Online thieves may start to create a “false trust” client profile through the following method. Typically they may register as normal (using false email or false ID) and genuinely order a small item. Then, a month or so later, they may order again, maybe one or two items more than the last. They will then build up to a larger order of considerable value which because of previous purchases you would be likely to ship without question. At this point they will say their card has not been authorized and issue a charge-back. If you feel nervous about sending something, ask for a home phone number – you can cross reference against the address quite easily. this will at least eliminate fake collection points, like Mail Box ETC.
• I would advise always adding a secure signature service, using a registered carrier. A short time ago a “client” tried to order a large volume of goods, they insisted on using a personal shipping service called Speed-Ship… I hadn’t heard of this service so I checked it out at Company House and no such service existed. I refunded the order and blocked the email address.
• Be skeptical of callers who ask you to take their credit cards and input manually on their behalf. This is another way that they can legitimately say that they did not authorize the sale.
• Finally if it feels odd to you then don’t ship. Its your right to refund and not send the goods if you feel suspicious.

Online shipping can be a significant part of your years revenue but its important to be wary of protecting yourself and your business against a scam.