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What to do if you get scammed while shopping online

BBB of Iowa gives a tip on what to do if you get scammed this Cyber Monday.

DES MOINES, Iowa — Nearly 63 million people are expected to hit the internet this year for Cyber Monday shopping, according to the National Retail Federation.

If a person does fall victim to a scam, Laura Chavez with the Better Business Burea of Iowa said there are options to help remedy the situation. 

For the past four years, she said online scams have been rising, and four out of five people who reported being victims of online scams have lost money. 

This holiday season, if someone does become a victim of a scam, it's important to report it to BBB through their Scam Tracker. They might be able to help out.

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"People will contact us if they feel that they've been scammed and sometimes we can help them if it's somewhat of a legitimate company," Chavez said. "We do offer a lot of like post-purchase advice on how to handle a situation if you have been scammed."

She noted if the company is not legitimate, it's harder to recover the money lost. 

Chavez also noted the Scam Tracker tool is useful to use during this time of year because it's interactive. It will show users places around the country where certain scams have happened, and what type of scam.

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