News Release

NILES, Mich. – Shortages in the supply of baby formula are leading new moms to find other ways of finding the much-needed item – and risking themselves to potential online scams.

The Better Business Bureau Serving Western Michigan is warning parents to be cautious when looking for baby formula supply online. So far, no one in Michigan has reported being a victim of this scam, however, we encourage those who do see this scam or become a victim, to report it to the BBB at bbb.org/scamtracker.

According to the 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report, online shopping scams are the riskiest.

“Parents are trying to feed their children, and scammers pray on that vulnerability,” says Lisa Frohnapfel, President and CEO of the Better Business Bureau Serving Western Michigan. “Be skeptical of people you don’t know selling formula online, even if they are only asking you to pay for shipping.”

How the scam works

An ad, post, or social media group posts they have baby formula available. The buyer contacts the seller via chat or direct message, showing photos of the cans available. The buyer makes a payment through a peer-to-peer platform such as PayPal (a BBB Accredited Business) or Venmo (a BBB Accredited Business), but the formula never arrives.

Signs of a potential online purchase scam include:

Positive reviews on the website that have been copied from honest sites or created by scammers. Be aware, some review websites claim to be independent but are funded by scammers. Check BBB.org.

No indication of a brick-and-mortar address or the address shows on a Google map as a parking lot, residence, or unrelated business than what is listed on the website.

Misspellings, grammatical errors, or other descriptive language that is inconsistent with the product.
The seller advertises on a social media site and is communicative until the payment is made. Once the payment clears, they are unreachable.

Check out the website before making a purchase:

Visit  BBB.org  to check a business’s rating and BBB accreditation status. Impostors have been known to copy the BBB seal. If it is real, clicking on the seal will lead to the company’s BBB profile on BBB.org – check the domain of the URL.

Conduct an internet search with the company name and the word “scam.” This may locate other complaints about the site.

Make a note of the website where the order is placed. Take a screenshot of the item ordered, in case the website disappears, or a different item is received in the mail than what was advertised.
Credit cards often provide more protection against fraud than other payment methods.
Think before you click. Be especially cautious about email solicitations and online ads on social media sites.