Price is too good to be true
Authentic designer goods rarely sell for 70%+ below retail. Deep discounts are the #1 lure for counterfeit sellers.
Blurry or stock-photo images
Legitimate sellers photograph their actual item. Stolen stock images or blurry close-ups hide telltale flaws.
Seller refuses additional photos
A genuine seller has nothing to hide. Refusals to show stitching, hardware, date codes, or serial numbers are a major red flag.
No returns or escrow
Scam sellers push for final-sale transactions and avoid platforms with buyer protection.
Vague item description
Authentic listings include brand, model, year, condition, and provenance. Generic descriptions copy-paste from the brand's website.
Watermark or logo looks off
Compare logos to official brand assets. Counterfeiters often get the font weight, spacing, or proportions slightly wrong.
Date codes or serial numbers missing
Most luxury goods have verifiable serial numbers. "I don't know where it is" is rarely true for real items.
Seller has new or thin history
Brand-new accounts with few reviews selling high-value luxury items deserve extreme scrutiny.
Pressure to pay outside the platform
Requests to pay via wire transfer, gift cards, or crypto remove all buyer protection.
Inconsistent packaging and accessories
Real luxury goods come with specific dust bags, boxes, and authenticity cards. Mismatched or missing packaging signals a fake.
Pro tip
Found 2 or more red flags? Trust your gut — and run the listing URL through Truehand before committing. Our AI checks 200+ markers in under 3 seconds.