“Doing your research in advance.” How you can stay protected against online scams

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – This week is National Consumer Protection Week. A time where the Federal Trade Commission wants to drive awareness to avoiding scams, protecting your identity and reporting fraud.

Payment applications, cryptocurrency investments and gaming are just the top three online scams people fall victim to according to Security.org.

They say 76% of Americans use payment services like Venmo, PayPal or Zelle at least once a week. Of those users, Security.org found 68% report they were scammed or experienced scam attempts.

"There's just a lot of uses for these apps, which makes them very popular. But since the user is, the burden is on them to verify the recipient. That is what creates the huge opportunity for scams to occur," Corie Wagner Sr. Editor, Industry Research at Security.org says, "You have to make sure as the person sending the money that the transaction is legitimate and there's just not the same types of protections that there are with a credit card or a bank account."

To avoid getting scammed, it's recommended to research – Don't automatically trust links and advertisements.

Security.org says the Better Business Bureau is a great source to use if purchasing from an online business – That way you can ensure you are buying from a legitimate company.