Buying air tickets online, you save your time and money. But always remember there is some danger, which is associated with such a purchase.
Electronic ticket is modern, fast and hassle-free. You can order it, being anywhere. Or they will order it for you, even without your presence, your secretary, relatives, familiar. All, what is required of you – is to present your passport at the check-in counter at the airport and receive your ticket.
Booking a flight ticket online, you get invaluable benefits. The only thing, what stops travelers today, – this is an opportunity to fall for phishing (internet fraud).
How to distinguish scammers from official airline ticket sellers
And So, what to do, so as not to become a victim of scammers and not to get a “donut hole” instead of an air flight?
Fly-by-night sites are constantly appearing on the Internet., who allegedly sell tickets. You can distinguish an official seller from a scammer by the following signs::
• Suspiciously low air ticket price. Ticket prices at agencies, really, different, promotions may take place, sales and more. However, the multiple difference in prices should alert you.
• You are offered to receive a ticket reservation before making an advance payment. Ticket offices don't work like that. The principle of their work is always the same: "In the evening - money, in the morning - chairs", или, as in our case, reservation. And never vice versa!
• Ticket office accepts payment via Yandex.Money or WebMoney, and not through a card account, for example MasterCard. Fraudsters are afraid to contact the security systems of payment systems.
But to prove, that a WebMoney payment in favor of an individual was made for an air ticket is almost impossible.
Buying air tickets on social networks or by hand is very, very risky. Official companies don't work like that. It is impossible to verify such sellers!
To protect yourself, use metasearch engines - these are special sites, which collect information about all flights and online ticket offices, who sell tickets. So, metasearch engine aviasales.ru works only with verified resources.
What to pay attention to
Before, how to start buying an air ticket, find out as much information as possible about the seller. Carefully study the company data, posted on the site. It would be a good idea to call the contact number provided.. Electronic mailboxes on free mail servers, for example @mail.ru, @yandex.ru and others, should alert you.
It wouldn't hurt to check, how long has the airline ticket office website been open?. You can do this using the service WHOis. For this:
1) enter the website address in the search bar;
2) click "go";
3) in the window that appears, find the line “created”. If the site was created a long time ago, feel free to use his services.
Please note! For a secure connection, electronic payment systems use the HTTPS protocol. That is, The website or page address should look like this:
The header of a regular page begins with the HTTP protocol: You cannot enter your credit card numbers on these pages.! Also, don’t be lazy to install it on your gadget, from which the ticket is purchased, antivirus program.
If you use the services of a previously unknown online ticket office, upon receipt of booking confirmation, call the airline - the flight operator - and find out, has your reservation appeared in their database?. Or use the sites myairlines.ru or checkmytrip.com for such a check..
If you follow all the above warnings, then Internet scammers are not afraid of you!