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    3 min read 5 stepsAugust 4, 2026Verified August 2026

    Buying Tech for a Grandchild This Fall? Watch for These Shopping Scams

    Back-to-school season brings a spike in fake online stores and too-good-to-be-true deals on laptops and tablets. Here is how to shop safely.

    At a Glance

    Category
    Safety & Privacy
    Difficulty
    Beginner
    Read Time
    3 min read
    Steps
    5
    Topics covered
    shopping scam
    back to school
    online shopping
    fake website
    laptop deals
    fraud

    In this guide (5 steps):

    1. 1.Shop directly with retailers you already know
    2. 2.Treat a huge discount as a warning sign, not a bonus
    3. 3.Always pay by credit card, never wire transfer or gift card
    4. 4.Check for real contact information before buying from an unfamiliar site
    5. 5.If you already paid a suspicious site
    1

    Shop directly with retailers you already know

    ~15s
    Type the address of a familiar retailer — Apple.com, BestBuy.com, Amazon.com, Walmart.com, Target.com — directly into your browser, rather than clicking a link from an ad or a search result. This avoids fake lookalike sites entirely.
    2

    Treat a huge discount as a warning sign, not a bonus

    ~15s
    If a laptop, iPad, or gaming console is priced far below what it costs everywhere else, that is the clearest sign of a scam site. Real retailers do not sell popular electronics at 50–70% off during back-to-school season.
    3

    Always pay by credit card, never wire transfer or gift card

    ~24s
    A credit card gives you dispute rights if an item never arrives or is not as described. If a website insists on payment only by wire transfer, gift card, or cryptocurrency, do not buy. This is one of the most reliable scam signals there is.

    Warning

    No legitimate retailer requires payment by gift card or cryptocurrency for a normal purchase. If a site insists on it, close the page.

    4

    Check for real contact information before buying from an unfamiliar site

    ~23s
    Look for a working customer service phone number and a physical business address on the website. If you can only find a contact form, or the phone number does not work, treat that as a red flag.

    Quick Tip

    Quick Tip: Search the store's name along with the word "scam" or "reviews" before buying. Problems with a fake store are usually reported quickly by other shoppers.

    5

    If you already paid a suspicious site

    ~15s
    Contact your credit card company right away to dispute the charge. Report the site to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov and to the Better Business Bureau at bbb.org/scamtracker. Acting quickly improves your chance of getting your money back.

    You Did It!

    You've finished reading: Buying Tech for a Grandchild This Fall? Watch for These Shopping Scams

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    Every August, many grandparents help pay for a grandchild's back-to-school laptop, tablet, or headphones — and scammers know it. Fake online stores advertising steep discounts on popular electronics spike every year during back-to-school season. They often appear in social media ads or search results, promising a well-known laptop or tablet at 50–70% off the normal price.

    These fake stores are built to look real, sometimes copying a real retailer's photos and layout almost exactly. The warning signs are usually the same: a price far lower than anywhere else, a site that only accepts payment by wire transfer, gift card, or cryptocurrency instead of a credit card, a very new website address, and no way to reach customer service by phone. Shoppers who pay never receive the item, or get a cheap fake instead of what was advertised.

    The safest path is to shop directly through retailers you already know and trust. Buying directly from Apple, Best Buy, Amazon, Walmart, Target, or a manufacturer's own website removes most of the risk, even if it means paying a bit more than an unfamiliar "deal" site.

    (Sources: Federal Trade Commission consumer alerts — consumer.ftc.gov; Better Business Bureau seasonal scam tracker — bbb.org)

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    shopping scam
    back to school
    online shopping
    fake website
    laptop deals
    fraud

    Official Resources

    FTC Consumer ProtectionCISA — Cybersecurity TipsAARP Fraud Watch Network

    Sources used to create and verify this guide. View all sources →

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