FRAUD ALERT: There are currently various attempts to defraud consumers using SquareTrade and other trusted companies. Please read warnings below, verify suspicious claims and be careful when making purchases online.SquareTrade will NOT email you to claim that the email you received from spoof@squaretrade.com was a mistake and insist that the seller is a Verified seal member while still asking you to send money via wire transfer. Fraudulent Sellers may be using legitimate Seal IDs to deceive you!
Beware of potential fake "spoof" emails that pretend to be an authentic email from SquareTrade or other trusted companies.
DO NOT SEND MONEY TO WESTERN UNION / MONEYGRAM / WIRE TRANSFER !!!
SquareTrade Never Takes Payment on Behalf of a Seller:
Scam emails will often request the consumer to pay via a money transfer service, such as Western Union or Money Gram, an escrow service, or by money order. BEWARE! SquareTrade will NEVER act as an escrow agent for a seller and will NEVER hold or transfer money on behalf of an auction or seller.
Claims of Large Insurance Backing Are Usually Fraudulent:
Scam emails often make false claims that the seller is backed by a large "protection account" or by 3rd party insurance or similar claims to make you feel safe. Verify such claims directly with 3rd parties.
Beware of Fake Websites:
Beware that scam artists often create fake websites to look exactly like trusted company websites that are linked to the scam emails. To help prevent being defrauded by such tricks, always directly type into your web browser the name of the business (e.g., www.squaretrade.com, www.ebay.com, www.paypal.com, www.amazon.com) when you are verifying information with a trusted website.
Verify Before You Pay:
If you have received one of these emails or are concerned about a seller, DO NOT pay until you have verified a seller's claims.
- If claims relate to SquareTrade, forward the email and questions to spoof@squaretrade.com, and wait until a SquareTrade representative contacts you.
- If the claims relate to a specific ecommerce website purchase, such as eBay, Amazon.com, Yahoo or craigslist.org, visit their website for further information and send suspicious emails or questions to their respective support teams (e.g., spoof@ebay.com, stop-spoofing@amazon.com, auctions-abuse@cc.yahoo-inc.com,abuse@craigslist.org). These companies might also have added buyer protection to cover some of your losses.
Use Secure Payment Methods:
We suggest NEVER using wire or money transfer methods, such as Western Union or MoneyGram, money orders or personal checks, when paying an unknown seller, as these forms of payment leave you with little or no recourse if the transaction is fraudulent. Credit cards generally offer the highest fraud protection for consumers. You should contact your credit card issuer for more information.
Use caution and common sense: "Too good to be true" deals are often fraudulent. Purchase responsibly and realize there are risks when buying online from unknown sellers.