ggem scams

Buying things online is not a new thing, we buy many things need to our day-to-day life online because of the convenience. Which saves time, fuel , money and also you have so many options to explore. You can see customer reviews, customer experience and can compare different products on your computer or mobile screen.

When it comes to purchasing  gemstones online, things getting much complicated and risky. If you are not careful or act wisely then you will end up loosing money, time, gemstone or all of them. I have purchased so many gemstones online when I started my journey on the gem business. But after few months, I realized I was scammed, cheated or manipulated in so many ways. Below I will mention few points to secure your hard earned money as you go through this journey.

Why do we need to buy Gemstones online?

There are several ways to buy gemstones. You can buy a gemstone:

1. From your own mine
   • If you are living an area where gemstones are found, you can invest on mining for searching gemstones.
2. Buying directly from miners
   • Many small scale miners sell their daily or weekly findings as rough gemstone to meet the financial needs to cover expenses such as wages, fuel, rent , etc. So you can buy from them if you have in depth knowledge in rough gemstones.
3. Buying from gem markets
   • In mining areas there are markets to sell rough or polished gemstones. These markets are commenced on certain days of a week. Local miners and gem brokers present their gemstones here. you can bargain and most of time you can get a good price there. Again you need a good knowledge in rough gemstones.
4. Buying from Gem Shops
   • In mining areas and cities, there are gem shops. Normally they sell cut and polished gemstones. As there are established businesses, you might have more security there. Some shop offer gem testing and identification services. So you have a good possibility to get a genuine product.
5. Buying from Online Gem broker.
   • There are companies who do brokering on gemstones. When you need a special gemstone, you can hire those companies. For an example, suppose you need a 10 carat Royal Blue Gemstone in Rectangular shape and brilliant cut with GIA certification, then you can hire their service. That a good option to find a proper gemstones.
6. Buying from online platforms
   • This is the easiest way to find a good stone or a trouble. You can find gemstones on Ebay, Etsy, Amazon, Temu or in social media market places like Facebook, tiktok. The problem is these platforms are not specifically specialized in selling gemstone. They allow to sellers to post anything in a limited inspection structure.
7. Buying online from a Gem Dealer
   • Some individuals as well as companies sell gemstones on line on their specific channels like website, whatsapp or tiktok shops.

Though the Gem industry spread around the every country in the world, but the gemstones are not found in every where. Some gemstones are found in only few countries only. Even within a such country also there in only few specific places where the gemstones are found.   In this case, the best option to find a gemstone is buy online.

Kinds of Online Scams

Below I will mention few online scams I experienced and lost my money. I hope with this insight you can identify distance trap before fall in to it.

Too low prices

                Every gemstone has a specific price. Sometimes when you search on platforms like Etsy, Temu, Ebay you will see insanely low prices on precious gemstones.  Such as 4carat Royal Blue Sapphire for $20. There is no way these stones go that below. In the real market Investment grade 4carat Royal blue price is high as $4000 or more. These scammers use terms like “Natural”, “Certified”, “Ceylon” to mislead the customers. They know someone who is looking for such a stone for that low price, will never go for GIA certification spending another $95.

Avoid providing more information

                Mostly those scammers don’t provide further information on a gemstone, but leaving the only option as “Buy Now”. I tried to contact 15 sellers on Etsy to verify the origin of the Stone they advertised, buy only 2 replied. If they are genuine sellers, they should have the ability to provide necessary information asked. Some of them only appeared in those platforms only. No physical location, address, website or any contact number.

                Recently I ordered a gemstone from such platform for a low price to understand the scope of this scam. That seller has so many positive feedbacks. Some customers has posted their purchases with photos and very long lovely feedbacks. When I sent that gemstone to gem laboratory, the gemology report was “Laboratory-Grown Sapphire (Corundum)”

Fake Certification

                Sometimes you see they have posted gemstones with certificates. Specially those certificates from gem labs even don’t have a website. Which means there is no way to check the authenticity. Some times certificate is genuine but gemstone is fake. Here is how they do such things. They have a real gemstone, specially one with renowned color such as “Padparadscha”. So they get cerificates from several local gem labs for same gem. Then they make exact same size and cut gemstones  using Cubic Zirconia.  When someone order a gem they send the real certificate with fake gem. When you get a gem with a certificate, you won’t bother to get another certificate. They know that.

No Return Policy

                If there is no return policy, it is completely “No – No” situation. When you buy something online which is not sure, then always go for return policy.

Using Misleading Terms

                After inspecting over 100 gemstone postings, I have noticed few term used by Scammers to mislead entry level gem enthusiast. Those are,

                AAA / AAAAA / Premium grade

                Wholesale price / factory direct / liquidation / urgent sale

                Kashmir blue / Burmese / Ceylon / Madagascar

                Certified

                Natural/CZ

                Investment grade / museum quality

How to avoid fall in to scams

1. Take time to verify the seller before gemstone
2. Try to contact directly by phone or email
3. Check them on trusted review platforms like trustpilot.com
4. Check the price if it is too good to be true
5. Always ask for a reputed certification and try to verify it
6. Ask for in person sale if there is an opportunity
7. Always ask for insured delivery method
8. Try to get live video viewing

Final thoughts : Always remember gemstones are not cheap. They hold values for generations. Natural gemstone is a rare piece of nature. So You can’t get them for unbelievable low price. Always try to get good stone for reasonable price.