Amazon.ca is concerned about the safety and security of our customers. Accordingly, we have put a number of technological protections in place to ensure that our transaction process is extremely safe and that our customers' information is secure.

Additionally, Amazon.ca takes a number of steps to help ensure that our third-party seller platforms are safe and that our sellers are of the highest quality. However, keep in mind that customer protection is a two-way street. When buying or selling on any online venue, caution must always be practiced.

The overwhelming majority of online transactions are completed without incident. While the possibility of being defrauded by a third-party seller is minimal, there are some risks. Amazon.ca has developed the following guidelines for buyers and sellers to help ensure that your online shopping experience is safe and secure.

Buyer Tip: Only Pay Through Amazon.ca

• Payments through Amazon.ca provide buyers with a convenient method of payment. This is the only authorized and recognized form of payment for Marketplace purchases. Sellers may only use Amazon.ca to complete transactions.
• Regardless of circumstances, buyers should never pay for an item from a third-party seller using an alternative form of payment such as wire transfer, credit card, money orders, check, cash, etc.
• Only items purchased through Amazon are eligible for protection under the Amazon.ca A-to-z Guarantee. Click here to learn more about the Amazon.ca A-to-z Guarantee.

Buyer Tip: Research your seller.

• Buyers should always research a seller's feedback history prior to initiating a transaction. Feedback is the leading indicator of a seller's overall quality. Look for clues within a seller's feedback that indicate the following: The ability to fulfill and ship orders in a timely fashion, a seller's willingness to resolve transaction disputes, and an indication that the quality of the products shipped matches the description supplied by the seller. Click here to learn more about seller feedback.

Buyer and Seller Tip: Protect your passwords.

• If using a public computer or terminal, always log out when you complete an online session.
• Avoid using the same password for multiple online accounts.
• Passwords are case sensitive. For instance, "PASSWORD" and "Password" are two different passwords. When choosing a password, remember the capitalization you use.
• Passwords must be a minimum of 6 characters.
• It's best to avoid passwords that are easy to guess, such as "secret," "password," or "letmein." We also suggest that you avoid using your name, e-mail address, or other personal information that is easily obtained.
• Though it's not a requirement, adding numbers or special characters to your password will make it even stronger. For example, the password "rivers2!%" is a much stronger password than "rivers."
• Guard your password carefully. Remember, anyone who knows your password may access your account.

Buyer and Seller Tip: Be wary of unsolicited e-mail and telephone contacts.

• Amazon.ca will never e-mail or call a customer and ask that they disclose or verify their Amazon.ca password, credit card, or banking account number. Such information should only be submitted when completing an order on Amazon.ca, registering to sell on Amazon.ca, contacting Amazon.ca directly, or when making updates to the Your Account or Seller Account areas.
• If you are contacted by or receive an unsolicited e-mail from an unknown entity, and are asked to confirm or provide your password or personal or banking information, simply disregard the request and report the incident to Amazon.ca for investigation.
• Buyers and sellers on the third-party sales platform should always carefully review order and shipment confirmation e-mails to ensure that they are legitimate and have been sent by Amazon.ca. To do this, simply cross-reference confirmation e-mails with the transaction history found within the Your Account or Seller Account areas.
• If you receive a suspected fake Amazon.ca e-mail, or discover a spoof Amazon.ca website, please report the incident to Amazon.ca by sending the original spoofed e-mail as an attachment or forwarding the e-mail directly to stop-spoofing@amazon.com.

Seller Tip: Ship only to supported addresses.

• Orders must only be shipped to addresses supplied by Amazon.ca (contained within the ship confirmation e-mails). Sellers should be especially concerned if contacted by a buyer and asked to ship a completed order to an alternative address. In this case, sellers should refund the buyer and then report the occurrence to Amazon.ca. Buyers are responsible for providing a current shipping address upon registration.