You could lose thousands to this online car-buying scam

OK, most people who are shopping for a car online probably aren't going to expect to run into this money-grabbing scam.

So here goes: There's a risk that you might run into a bogus car dealership website that is designed to trick buyers into sending money upfront, typically by wire transfer, according to a new alert from the Federal Trade Commission.

That's right. Scammers are now cloning some car dealership websites. Why not? They impersonate everything else.

It's a good warning to keep in your glove compartment — especially if you love a big V-8 engine and classic car culture.

Right now, these fake sites appear to focus primarily on dealerships that sell a variety of used cars, including classic and collector cars. But there's a concern that scammers could expand their horizons.

The FTC notes that unwitting car buyers can send thousands of dollars, show up at a real dealership, and then sadly discover that the legitimate dealer has no record of their order or payment.

The crooks cloned "a real auto dealer’s website — often using AI to do so — copying the brand logos, vehicle listings and photos down to the last detail," according to the FTC.

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/money/