It is possible to be informed in online shopping against defective products, return and exchange problems, misleading comments, unfairly highlighted products and internet scams from our eagerly awaited shipments.
What if something you didn’t expect came out of the package that you ordered online with great excitement and waited days for it to arrive? We are sure there will be people here who remember the boy who found a cucumber in a box where he was waiting for a tablet.
Shopping online is easier than ever. However, the ubiquity of online shopping brings with it some challenges.
Accessing a wide range of products and services whenever and wherever we want helps us save time and sometimes money. However, defective products in our eagerly awaited shipments, problems with returns and exchanges, misleading reviews, unfairly highlighted products and internet scams can negatively impact this experience.
Publika.az reports that Faktyoxla Lab. this article will talk about ways to be “educated” in online shopping to be aware of possible risks and our rights.
The number one problem with online shopping: Fraud
One of the biggest drawbacks of online shopping is undoubtedly the lack of face-to-face communication between buyer and seller. The activity of fraudsters who take advantage of this situation on the Internet is increasing. In particular, purchases that are not made from online shopping platforms such as “Hepsiburada” and “Trendyol”, which bring buyers and sellers together and have a transparent sales and return process, can create a security vulnerability for the consumer.
Instagram boutiques are among the most popular online shopping destinations of recent times. However, consumers’ complaints about these boutiques do not subside. Most consumers seek redress by posting complaints online about accounts impersonating trusted boutiques or those selling products but not shipping them.
The problems experienced in online shopping are not limited to these. Most of the products sold in online stores are sold under the pretense that they are genuine and imported products. However, according to users, the authenticity of most of them is in doubt.
Another problem with online shopping is that there is a huge difference between what we think we are buying and what we actually get. One of the most common problems is that sellers use misleading photos to sell a product and send a completely different product to the buyer.
These scams are quite common in online shopping. So much so that this situation inspired the popular TikTok trend for a while.
Instagram’s “business account” feature does not solve the reliability problem. Any profile can be converted to a business account by switching to a professional account in the account settings.
Additionally, businesses must follow a different procedure to set up a store on Instagram. Businesses that meet Instagram’s “Commerce Eligibility Requirements” can open a store on the network. Although the activity of these accounts is periodically checked based on consumer feedback, it is not possible to prevent fraud.
How does the misinformation we encounter when shopping online affect our shopping experience?
Fraudulent activities are not the only factor that negatively affects the online shopping experience. Although we can protect ourselves from fraudsters, the misinformation that we constantly encounter when shopping online and that most consumers take for granted directly leads to the violation of consumer rights.
Lawyer Umay Dogan, a member of the Istanbul Bar Association Consumer Rights Center, lists the main misinformation we encounter when shopping online:
-Exchange, Refund only: Exchanges and refunds are subject to consumers’ right of withdrawal.
– It is possible to change in the first 3 days: The consumer has the right to exchange or return the product within the first 14 days after receiving it without giving any reason.
-Shipping charges for exchanges and returns are at the buyer’s expense: According to the law that will come into force in Turkey on January 1, 2025, if the product sent is defective, the seller is obliged to pay the shipping fee.
Returns are not accepted if the packaging has been opened: This applies only to products that lose their quality after opening the packaging and are not suitable for return in terms of health and hygiene.
Statements in bold are not superior to the statements of some internet sellers and, of course, to legal regulations. Every consumer is exposed to such widespread misinformation, which often has a negative impact on the online shopping experience. Buyers who are not aware of their rights and obligations as consumers are often forced to make purchases according to the rules set by sellers.
Another risk is digital security
Buying from a website or Instagram boutique without being sure of its authenticity can pose various digital security risks. For example, if the online store you plan to shop at is fake, the product you received may not reach you at all or the product you expected may not arrive. However, information you share with vendors using non-encrypted websites card information can be used for malicious purposes and transferred to third parties.
It is possible to avoid these risks by paying attention to several important points in “Instagram”:
Examining account information: To understand whether the “Instagram” boutique is reliable or not first job, is to view the account’s connection date, location, and previous usernames in the “About this account” section when you enter the profile. If you encounter a suspicious situation here, the boutique in question may not be safe.
Checking Account Followers: Before you consider buying from an Instagram boutique, looking at the account’s followers can form an opinion about the account. If the account has followers that can be understood as mostly bot accounts, the boutique you are considering shopping may not be trustworthy.
Examining the number of likes and comments on posts: At this point, it is also important to compare the number of followers with the number of likes on the posts. If the number of likes is too low compared to the number of followers, the account should be suspicious. However, the presence of irrelevant comments under the posts is also a sign of a suspicious situation.
Examining the account website: In the bio of “Instagram” boutiques, there is usually a link to the website. You can check for any suspicious situation by visiting this site.
Prices of products sold: View product prices can give us an important clue. Selling every product at the same price on an “Instagram” page or website can be questionable.
There are some other points to consider for safe online shopping.
Buying the product from the brand’s website: You can buy the product from the brand’s own website, especially to minimize your worries about the authenticity of the product you are buying. Things to consider when buying products from the website the most important point a site’s URL starting with “https” means that it has a secure protocol and has a valid address.
Non-sharing of personal information other than information required to complete the sales transaction: Remember that you only need to share your card and address information to complete the sale.
Not allowing websites to store your card details: Allowing your card details to be stored on untrusted websites can create a serious digital security vulnerability.
Making your purchases through trusted e-commerce platforms: On platforms that bring buyers and sellers together, seller obligations to the platform make shopping safer.
Learn about the experiences of other consumers: About the online store you are considering shopping by searching the internet you can find the experiences of other users. In addition, you can also check the reviews of the product you want to buy.
How reliable are user reviews and ratings?
This is where the problem of fake reviews on e-commerce platforms comes into play. Purchased reviews and misleadingly presented products are also a problem discussed on other e-commerce sites around the world. Therefore, we have to look at these comments.
Product reviews come up from time to time on e-commerce platforms. Comments written under products with similar patterns raise question marks in consumers. For example, “Trendyol Yemek” has implemented a new program that shows which product the reviewer bought in order to eliminate complaints that users suffer from fake reviews. Because before this update, it was revealed that some restaurant owners ordered products like water or buttermilk and wrote comments as customers.
Although e-commerce platforms such as “Amazon”, “Hepsiburada”, “Trendyol” share their principles regarding product comments and evaluations on their websites, they cannot sufficiently ensure transparency.
You can read the article about fake reviews praising the product at this link:
However, these e-commerce platforms unfair competition resulting from the promotion of its own products is another point that overshadows reliability. The Competition Council has decrees aimed at preventing such unfair competition on e-commerce platforms. For example, based on the prevention of unfair competition and monopoly in e-commerce in Turkey, “Trendyol” will sell its own brand “Trendyolmilla” products on a separate platform from January 1, 2024.
Not every review we see may reflect the true qualities of the product. Or, the reason some products stand out may not be because the product is popular, but because of deliberate interventions by the platform. That’s why it’s good to be skeptical when shopping on these platforms that we think are safe.
Consumer rights: Do we know them, where can we get the right information?
Fraudsters, sellers selling defective products, authenticity issues, misinformation about online shopping, all elements that harm our online shopping experience also violate our consumer rights. But do we consumers know our rights?
According to experts, knowing our rights as a consumer can significantly improve our shopping experience. These consumer rights consist of rights governed by various laws and regulations. Of course, it is impossible to memorize all our rights regulated by laws and regulations. But at this point, we can ensure a safe shopping experience by activating the muscle of doubt. For example, when shopping at an Instagram boutique, “Do I really have 3 days to exchange?” you might think. A simple Google search to find the truth will help us learn and protect our rights to improve our shopping experience.
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