Use 'ScamCheck’ to check whether a website or e-retailer is safe

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Eva, Legal Advisor
Published on 25 May 2022

Today, Veiliginternetten.nl, ECP | Platform voor de InformatieSamenleving and Thuiswinkel.org are launching their new 'ScamCheck’ tool, which allows you to check how likely it is that a website is unsafe. This allows consumers to quickly see for themselves whether a website is safe or not.

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How does ScamCheck work?

Simply enter the URL of the website or e-retailer you want to check in the ScamCheck and ScamCheck's algorithm will retrieve information from various sources. All these data are aggregated to produce a single score, which gives you an idea whether the website or e-retailer is trustworthy.
ScamCheck collects different types of information:

  • Information from parties such as Thuiswinkel.org, the Chamber of Commerce, Trustpilot (for reviews), Quad9 (malware), ScamAdviser (scams) and Netsweeper (a.o. phishing).
  • Information from technical checks. For example, ScamCheck checks when the website and domain name were created.
  • ScamCheck also works with consumers and business owners. Anyone can contribute information about websites to help determine their credibility, providing a wealth of data on the overall trustworthiness of a website or e-retailer. If an e-retailer has managed to rack up 300 positive reviews in just a few days’ time, there is a chance that it may not be trustworthy.

Launch

The tool was launched on May 26. During the summer, ScamCheck will be further tailored to and developed for Dutch users. To find ScamCheck, visit www.veiliginternetten.nl. This initiative is supported by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM), the Netherlands Authority for Financial Markets (AFM), Stichting Brein and the European Consumer Centre (ECC), among others.