For those who invest at trusted sites like US Gold Bureau, understanding how the purchasing of precious metals over the web should function is extremely important.

Scams are obviously not common, but staying sharp and vigilant is the best tactic for avoiding ever falling victim to a scam yourself. Those investors at U.S. Gold Bureau do realize this, but in sharing with friends who may want to invest, it is key to explain that as precious metals prices rise, people trying to make a quick and unfair profit will be more likely to stoop to shenanigans. Let's look deeper at how to guard ourselves from precious metals scams online.

For starters, you want to stick to trusted sites like U.S. Gold Bureau and avoid anonymous sellers. Looking for bargains on auction sites or sites that feature classified ads seems smart, but one of the weaknesses is that you may not know who you are doing business with. There is little you can do if you buy damaged gold coins, or worse yet, fake gold, via a site that lists ads or auctions. You want to be able to examine what you buy up front in most cases or be working with a reputable seller like United States Gold Bureau if you are going to spend what it takes to get quality precious metals or coins.Email messages you did not sign up for or from people you are not familiar with that offer you gold, silver or platinum are also not good options to act on.

At a reputable dealer like US Gold Bureau, customers only receive emails or offers if they have previously signed up to request such mailings. Unsolicited contact is a flat out bad idea to follow up on because there is nothing you can do if you enter credit card data or other sensitive personal information and that information ends up getting used for criminal activities.Some things you can look for is what organizations a dealer you are interested in belongs to. The Better Business Bureau is one such organization and it can actually give you information about a dealer so that you will be able to see their history. Sellers of coins often belong to the Professional Coin Grading Service and are an Authorized Dealer. This is another mark of quality that tells you something about who you are dealing with. Checking out reputations helps collectors and investors stick to more reputable companies such as United States Gold Bureau.

Organizations have standards and you can inquire about those to verify that a dealer you are considering doing business with is, in fact, a legitimate one.There are many ways to tell if a deal you are about to do is safe, but one of the best remains your own logical thinking and your intuition. If something feels like a scam, pay attention to your gut reaction. You might not see any evidence, but if you talk to others and they confirm your suspicions then you will certainly be best off avoiding that dealer. There are plenty of quality businesses out there that deal in precious metals so there is no sense in accepting a potential risk.

Author's Bio: 

Shane Gulliver is a numismatics writer and fan of dealers like US Gold Bureau that give collectors what they want. When not reporting, he spends time cooking and painting in his Las Vegas home.