Fake payment receipts: how shops can check they were paid

A screenshot of a transfer is not a payment. Anyone can edit one, or make one from scratch, in about a minute. Before you hand over or ship an order, open your own bank or wallet app and check that the money is in your account. If it isn't there yet, the order waits, whatever the customer says.

How the fake receipt scam works

It targets small shops, food delivery businesses and people who sell through WhatsApp, Instagram or marketplaces. It usually goes like this:

1. A customer places an order, often for something easy to resell: phones, clothes, perfume, phone top-ups, or a large food order.
2. They send a screenshot or a PDF of a "successful transfer" over WhatsApp. It has your name, the right amount, a date and a reference number.
3. Then comes the pressure: "I already paid, send the order", "the delivery driver is waiting", "my bank is slow, it'll show up in a minute". It often comes at a busy moment, when nobody has time to check.
4. You hand over the goods. The money never arrives.

Common variations:

• The overpayment. The receipt shows more than the price, and the customer asks you to send back the difference. You lose the goods and the "change".
• The fake notification. You get a text message or an email that looks like your bank saying a payment arrived, from a number or address that isn't your bank's.
• The "receive your payment" link. A buyer sends a link "to release the payment" or "to confirm the sale". The page asks for your card number, your online banking password or a code. That isn't a payment: it's a way into your account.

Why a screenshot proves nothing

A receipt is just an image. There are apps and websites made only to create fake receipts that copy the look of real banks and wallets: the scammer types your shop's name, the amount, the date and the time, and gets an image that looks exactly like a real one. A good fake has no flaw you can reliably see, and no tool can reliably tell a fake receipt image from a real one. Hunting for blurry numbers or odd fonts only catches careless fakes.

Even a real receipt doesn't prove the money reached you. A transfer can be pending, rejected, reversed or sent to the wrong account, and the screenshot looks the same. The only record that counts is the one your bank or wallet keeps of your own account, which the customer can't touch.

How to confirm a payment, step by step

1. Open your own app. Open your bank or wallet app yourself and go to your movements or transaction history. Never use a link or a phone number the customer sends you.
2. Find the incoming payment. Check that it shows as received, not pending. Compare the amount, the date and time and, if your app shows them, the sender's name and the reference.
3. Don't rely on a text message or an email. Either can be fake. Alerts inside your official app are fine, but when in doubt, open the app.
4. Only then hand over or ship the order. If the payment isn't there, the order waits. Tell the customer calmly, with one of the messages further down.
5. Allow for slow transfers without giving in. Instant payments usually show up within seconds. Some transfers between different banks take hours, or arrive the next business day. A real customer can wait or pay another way; pressure to ship first is the warning sign.
6. If they send a link, check it before anything else. Paste the whole message into the scam checker. It spots common scam scripts and checks where any links really lead, whether they imitate a bank and how old the domain is. The text is read in your browser and never leaves it; only the links go to our server (api.ethorns.com), and the results are kept for up to an hour. It doesn't judge receipt images; for the payment, your app is the check.

A simple routine for your shop

A fixed rule works better than trying to judge each customer. If everyone follows it, nobody has to decide under pressure.

• One rule, no exceptions. Nothing leaves the shop until the payment shows in the account. That includes regular customers and "urgent" orders.
• Decide who checks. Cashiers and delivery staff often can't see the account. Choose one or two trusted people to confirm payments, and have everyone else ask them first. Delivery staff never accept a screenshot as payment.
• Turn on alerts in the official app for every incoming payment, so checking takes seconds.
• Ask for a reference. If the customer's app allows it, ask them to write the order number in the transfer description. Each payment becomes easy to find.
• Never refund a "difference" because of a receipt. Check your app first. If extra money really arrived, read what to do when money is sent to you by mistake before you send anything back.
• Put the rule in writing in your chat greeting message, your catalog or your website: "Orders paid by transfer are sent once the payment shows in our account."

What to tell customers, politely

Most customers are honest, and a clear, friendly rule doesn't offend them. Say that it applies to everyone. Some messages you can adapt:

• "Thank you! We send orders as soon as the payment shows in our account. It's our rule for every order, and it usually takes a few minutes."
• "We got your receipt, thanks. The payment hasn't shown in our account yet. As soon as it does, your order is on its way."
• "Sorry, we can't accept screenshots as proof of payment. If you're in a hurry, you can also pay in cash or by card when you pick it up."

If the customer gets angry or keeps insisting, don't argue. Repeat the rule once. A real payment shows up on its own.

If you already delivered and weren't paid

1. Check your app again over the next few hours, in case it was a slow transfer.
2. Save the evidence before the customer deletes it: screenshots of the chat with the number or profile visible, the fake receipt, the delivery address and the order details.
3. If you typed card or bank details, or a code, on a page they sent, call your bank now, using the number on your card or in the official app, and ask them to block access.
4. Report it. The "scammed or hacked? what now" tool shows the steps and the official places to report in your country. It's a page of steps and sends nothing anywhere. The guide on where to report a scam explains what to prepare and what happens next.
5. Report the number or profile on the platform, and warn other sellers you know: the same person often tries several shops.

Be wary of anyone who offers to recover your money or your goods for a fee. That's a second scam.

Quick checklist

• I checked the payment in my own bank or wallet app, opened by me.
• It shows as received, with the right amount.
• I didn't rely on a screenshot, a PDF, a text message or an email.
• I didn't open a "receive your payment" link or type card details or codes.
• I didn't send back a "difference" because of a receipt.
• My staff know the rule: nothing goes out until the money shows up.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an app that detects fake receipts?

Not one you can trust. A well-made fake has no visible flaw, and an app that claims to spot them can be wrong in both directions. The check that works is your own account's history.

The receipt has a reference number. Can I check it?

Fake receipt makers invent reference numbers too. Look for the payment in your own movements, inside your bank's app, never through a link the customer sends.

The customer says their bank takes a day. Should I believe it?

It can be true: some transfers between banks take hours or a business day. That's a reason to wait, not to ship. Offer to hold the order until the money arrives.

Isn't it rude to make customers wait?

No. Many shops work this way, and a short, friendly message makes it clear that it's a rule for everyone, not suspicion of one person.

Try it

• 1.1Is it a scam?Paste a message or link you received and see its warning signs: brand look-alikes, new domains, short links, scam wording.
• 1.2Scammed or hacked? What nowSteps for the first hours after a scam or a hack: a bad link, a shared code, a stolen WhatsApp, money sent.

For your team

• US$19Phishing awareness kit for small businessesA 30-minute session on fake messages, ready to give to your team: a facilitator guide, 12 example messages, a poster, a policy and a quiz.