Guardia di Finanza

Using the Internet to make purchases is convenient, but do not forget some important points! 
-  Verify whether the selling company really exists.

You can do this by comparing the information indicated on the website, such as the name of the company, the address and telephone numbers, with those available from other public lists, or also from an official enquiry with the Chamber of Commerce.

- If you are dealing with private sellers through so-called online auctions, there
are even fewer guarantees.

In these cases, in the event that goods received are substantially different from those selected or in cases of non-delivery of goods, the only solution is legal action by submitting all of the documentation relating to the transaction (e-mails or proof of payment) to an office of the judiciary police. In the event that the seller is located abroad, the possibility of recovering payment or goods is notably diminished.

- In the event of an inconsistency between what was displayed on the Internet
and the goods actually received, you may return the product to the sender
within ten days of receipt (this is the right to withdraw as provided for in the
legislative decree no. 185/1999).

Use of credit cards

For online purchases, we recommend the use of pre-paid credit cards that do not allow the so-called "computer hackers" to access your savings, since these types of credit cards are not linked to your bank account, even if nowadays the security tools used for these types of payments are quite reliable.

Phishing

This is a type of fraud aimed at obtaining important personal data, with the specific intent of acquiring credit card numbers, passwords, and private information regarding bank accounts. It is almost always initiated by e-mail, and it involves e-mails sent by the swindler (phisher) which seem to originate from the websites of banking institutions or the Poste Italiane S.p.A. (Italian Postal

Service) asking for the confirmation of personal
data. The most common techniques used by phishers are:

- deceiving you with the use of texts, images and in many cases actual clones of original websites in such a way as to convince you of the authenticity of the message:
- disguising a false URL (this is the website address which you will be
unknowingly directed to), with the real address of the cloned website.

The phisher sends the same bait-message to a very large number of e-mail addresses, in the hope of reaching, by chance, someone who actually has an account with the banking service used.

NOTE:
There are specific programs, such as anti-phishing bars and blacklists that will alert you when you are visiting a website that is probably not authentic.

In these cases, it is recommended that you immediately eliminate the e-mail,
without opening any related attachments.

Multi-level lotteries

These are activities that include the offer of high technology products in exchange for payment of an amount that will allow you to subscribe to a list and that ask you to spread the news in order to find new participants. The more users you find that agree to the offer by paying the registration fee, the further your name will advance toward the top of the list, allowing you to reach the promised award. In reality, the possibility of winning is extremely limited and the only one who really earns anything, at the expense of the participants, is the person who organizes the "game".

The following advice may be helpful:

- forget about joining these types of "pyramid lotteries";

- do not trust offers of prizes, such as high technology devices, or trips and
cruises that are offered at unrealistic market prices.

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