Trust Seals and Trustmarks - Which are Real and Which are Fake?

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of trust marks being offered online. They differ by quality, the industry and the region they cover. Some trust marks are nothing more than the logo as there is else to them. Others enrol the company in a process that could take weeks or months where their company background is checked thoroughly and their website scrutinized for legal compliance. 

Likewise, some trust seals only apply to certain industries like travel, financial advice or online shopping.

Finally, most trust marks only cover specific countries. A few trust marks cover larger regions like the European Union but few, if any, trust seals really have a global reach. Hereby a few tips on how to separate the good from the bad and the ugly. 

How to Check the Quality of a Trust Mark

Click on it! The first thing to do is to click on the trust seal logo. Does it go to a different site? If it goes to a page on the same site, that does not tell you anything as the website owner remains in full control of the information provided. If it leads to another site, you can take the next step.

Is the company/website listed on the site of the trust seal? A professional trust seal links to the so-called certificate page about the website you are researching. Here, the full name of the company, its contact details and websites should be listed. If not, the trust seal site should offer a way to check if the web site is actually a member/customer. If you cannot find the website listed on the site of the trust seal, the loog is probably being misused. A final check could be to contact the trust seal company and ask if the website is certified by them. 

What does the trust mark stand for? This is an important step. Some trust seals hardly offer any real protection to consumers. Many SSL providers offer a logo that communicates reliability. However, the only value they actually deliver is that the communication between your computer and the server of the website you are researching is encrypted. Other trust seals verify the financial, cybersecurity or legal compliance of the website. Be sure to understand which checks the trust mark does before allowing the website to show its logo. 

What help can you expect? Finally, check the small print. Does the trust seal offer a dispute resolution or mediation platform? Does it support consumers from your country? What happens if the merchant has to pay you back?  Most trust seals only verify, they do not offer consumer guarantees. The only real power they have is to revoke the membership of the website. We only know of one trust seal which actually offers a money-back guarantee (Trusted Shops which is mainly active in German-speaking countries). 

Below a list of trust seals for online stores and a (subjective) indication of their strength. If you miss one, please let us know!

The Ecommerce Foundation, which is the parent company of Scamadviser, also offers its own Safe.Shop trust mark. Please visit this page for more information.