40 People Who Deeply Regret Shopping Online (New Pics)

If we said that the internet can sometimes seem like an evil den full of liars and con-artists, we’d probably surprise absolutely no one. It’s not all cat pics, wholesome stories, and heartwarming strangers online. Alas! The anonymous nature of the internet means that some people use it to gain others’ trust and scam them out of their money. And online marketplaces are no exception, even if they do have their own safeguards in place.

"I think online shopping scams are different because you lose that layer of dealing with a real-life person. When you have a real person in front of you, a typical person will feel shame or guilt at the thought of taking advantage of a person. With the internet, you aren't dealing with a person, but a username and avatar. It is much easier to act maliciously when you don't have a real victim directly in front of you," one of the moderators from the r/Scams subreddit, a community of nearly 256k people, explained to Bored Panda the difference between online shopping scams and other swindles.

"Online scams also use a lot of tricks to pressure buyers; low prices, pushes to buy now!, taking advantage of someone's kindness or naivete (re: advance check fraud, money mules, etc), or advertising one product and sending another (or nothing at all, by using a fake tracking number). Getting a person to make a decision via high-pressure tactics and preventing them from reflecting and making a sound decision is key," the mod said.

The moderator reiterated what we all know inside that if a deal sounds too good to be true, it really is. "If a deal is too good to be true, it is. If you see a pair of brand new Apple AirPods advertised for $50, you are not getting an authentic product. There are many counterfeit items out there on the market, and you need to verify authenticity before hitting buy," they told Bored Panda.

"Not only to avoid contributing to the counterfeit market, but because these knockoff products do not always go through the same safety standards of the real item; they may not be UL certified, they may use chemicals or ingredients that are not FDA approved and are unsafe for use on or in the human body, or could cause major harm to human life or property."