Online buyers have been urged to be aware of their consumer rights ahead of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping sprees.
The warning came as a leading consumer group said that more than half of the items on offer for Black Friday last year were the same price or in some cases even cheaper!
A survey carried out by the European Consumer Centre (ECC) found seven out of 10 consumers have bought online in the past year yet four out of ten are not confident on their consumer rights.
Gardaí and retailers are launching an awareness campaign later with tips for "Safe Online Shopping".
One issue for consumers is the boom in fake sites, posing as online outlets for well known brands. Always check that the website has a safe url which begins in https