How to avoid travel fraud online

In the largely unregulated World Wide Web, the principle of caveat emptor (let the buyer beware) has never been more important. How do you separate the good sites from the bad?

		Resources To check out the registration of a Web site: InterNIC -- www.interNIC.net Do a WhoIs search. To check out a travel company: NTA (National Tour Association, with 4000 members in 31 countries) -- www.ntaonline.com or 1-800-682-8886. USTOA (U.S. Tour Operators Association with more than 750 members in the United States) -- www.ustoa.com or 1-800-468-7862. ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents) -- www.asta.org or its consumer Web site at www.travelsense.org. Better Business Bureau -- www.bbb.org or (local office) 412-456-2700. Florida Sellers of Travel -- 1-800-435-7352. California sellers of travel program -- http://ag.ca.gov/travel/index.htm. To check foreign companies: Washington embassies -- www.embassy.org. National tourism organizations -- www.towd.com. To file a travel complaint: Federal Trade Commission -- www.ftc.gov or 1-877-382-4357. National Consumer League -- www.fraud.org or 1-800-876-7060. -- David Bear

The basics of being a cautious consumer online are similar to evaluating direct mail and telemarketing offers. First, be more skeptical of any contact you did not initiate. Beware of high-pressure sales tactics, and demand time to evaluate offers and make a buying decision. Remember: seeing something online isn't the same as reading it in a printed brochure. Electronic information can be changed in an instant. Even a printout of an e-mail or Web page isn't the same as written offers.

Never judge a company solely on its Web site. Great graphics and flashy plug-ins do not guarantee honesty or competence, though poor grammar and sloppy spelling can signal problems, especially if they're asking for advance payment for promised travel arrangements. Sticking to sites of known travel entities is usually a safe policy, but new wonderful, legitimate and often less expensive online resources appear all the time. If you have questions about with whom you're dealing, check the site's registration by searching the Internic data base, the registry for most recognized Internet domains.

Is the company a member of any governmental, tourism, or tourism industry organization, such as the USTour Operators Association, National Tour Association, American Society of Travel Agents, Better Business Bureau or Seller of Travel organizations in California and Florida? Don't just take the Web site's word for it.

Has the company won any awards from industry groups or been endorsed by travel publications? Is it bonded and able to provide proof of that bonding? Does it have a consumer protection plan to cover your deposits in the event of bankruptcy or nonperformance? While you preserve some degree of consumer protection by paying with a credit card, giving your account number to an unscrupulous operator can have consequences beyond the immediate charges.

Good Web sites have other attributes. If they ask you to supply private information and credit card numbers, you should have the option of using an SSL mode (secure server). Reputable e-commerce sites also post their privacy policy telling what they will do with your personal information.

Other options: Ask for references, such as past customers you can contact. Ask a travel agent for his or her opinion of the offer and whether it seems legitimate.

Be wary of deals that require you to buy coupons, pay in advance or react immediately or that give you many months to take the trip. Apart from any fraudulent intent, the company might be out of business by then.

Finally, never be afraid to trust your instincts. Gut feelings can be a reliable gauge of whether something is on the up-and-up. Even in the digital age, adages still ring true: If a travel deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.