Convincing fake and imitation stores are the latest online shopping scam the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is warning Australians to watch out for this Christmas. 

“We’re all online a lot more this year and people are doing a lot of their shopping online,” ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard told Luke Grant on 4BC Drive.

“Unfortunately the scammers are there too trying to trick us out of our money.”

Ms Rickard provided advice for identifying fake online stores.

“Enter the URL yourself, don’t go there via links, and always have a look at the web address … to make sure it really is the correct one.”

If purchasing from a new store, Ms Rickard recommends searching the store name on Google to read reviews from other shoppers.

“You’ll sometimes find a list a mile long of people telling you about scams,” she said.

Ms Rickard said common scam complains include purchases of pets, vehicles, phones, technology and surprisingly, RM Williams boots.

Press PLAY below to hear all of Delia Rickard’s scam advice

Image: Getty