Paying a Bill Online? Make Sure You’ve Found the Real Website

Key Takeaways

• The first website in an online search isn’t necessarily the company’s official payment site.
• Paid advertisements can resemble legitimate billing websites.
• Typing a known web address directly into your browser can be safer than searching.
• Verify the company and payment details before entering account or card information.

Main Article

Paying a bill online often starts with a simple search: type the company’s name into a search engine, click the first result and enter your payment information. But the Federal Trade Commission recently warned that this everyday habit can lead consumers to unofficial or misleading bill-payment websites. 

Some companies and scammers purchase advertisements that appear above normal search results and make them look like the official payment page for a utility, healthcare provider, government agency or other organization. Consumers may not realize they’ve reached a third-party site until after they’ve entered information, paid an unexpected fee or discovered that their payment wasn’t processed the way they expected. 

Before paying, look closely at the website address and confirm that you’re dealing directly with the organization you intended to reach. When possible, type an address you already know into your browser, use a previously saved bookmark or access the payment portal through the organization’s official app or account. The FTC specifically recommends scrolling past paid search results when you’re trying to locate an organization’s legitimate payment page. 

And don’t let familiarity make you less cautious. Even routine transactions such as paying a medical, utility or household bill involve valuable personal and financial information. Taking an extra few seconds to verify the website before entering that information can prevent a routine payment from becoming a much bigger problem.