What is Amazon Fraud Seller account?

 

Fraud isn’t a term we want to hear in any business, let alone an online e-commerce business. As an Amazon seller, you should be aware of some of the issues that can arise from such a competitive online marketplace, and unfortunately, fraud is one of those instances.

Online marketplaces like Amazon offer brands the platform to sell their products globally. An Amazon seller account is a must-have in today’s cut-throat business environment, but these accounts aren’t immune from malicious practices

Structuring your online marketing strategy around your Amazon seller account could grow your profits exponentially. By using affordable digital marketing tools, you can reach untapped consumer markets.

Ultimately, your business needs an Amazon seller account. Otherwise, your brand will struggle to remain relevant in a shrinking local market as competitors leverage online retail markets to grow. But there is also another thing you need to worry about – Amazon frauding your seller account.

This article will examine what a frauded account is and how frauding happens.

What is a frauded Amazon seller account?

While applying for an Amazon seller account is straightforward, getting approved is not a cakewalk. Amazon is beyond thorough in its vetting process. The main reason for the high level of caution is that Amazon can’t risk approving fraudulent brands and entities on its platform. In fact, getting approved for an Amazon seller account is only half the battle.

As mentioned, security is a major priority for Amazon. As a result, the platform has strict policies to prevent fraud. The hard pill to swallow is that you could end up with a “frauded” Amazon seller account if Amazon believes you violated its policies.

But what is a frauded Amazon seller account? Amazon reserves the right to remove owner and sub-owner access to any account it considers a security risk. For instance, Amazon will freeze your account if it detects unauthorized access.

On the other hand, the platform will also suspend your Amazon seller account if it considers it a fraud risk. In the end, your account will be locked. As you can imagine, a fraud strike on your Amazon seller account will devastate your business.

Apart from losing access to the lucrative marketplace, you won’t be able to remove your Amazon inventory stored in Amazon FCs. What’s worse is that sellers with frauded accounts can’t access funds in their accounts. A fraud strike is the most extreme action that Amazon can take against a seller.

How does an Amazon fraud seller account occur?

There’s no way around it; you need a deep understanding of Amazon security policies to lower the chances of Amazon frauding your seller account. Knowing why a frauded Amazon seller account occurs is a good start.

#1 Security

It comes as no surprise that security tops the list. While this happens for several reasons, it boils down to account access. In short, Amazon will suspend your account if it suspects unauthorized access.

While there are cases where there are valid security concerns, sometimes the strict policy affects innocent sellers as well. For example, Amazon might lock your seller account if it detects several access attempts in a short span. In addition, Amazon might also block your seller account for sudden changes to core account holder information such as credit card details.

These policies might seem strict at a glance, but they protect the interests of Amazon and sellers on the platform. First, an unauthorized party could do irreversible damage if they access your seller account.

Second, Amazon can’t risk releasing funds to a bad actor if your seller’s bank account has been tampered with. Consequently, while a locked account might be frustrating in the short term, the action can save your business.

#2 Risk to Amazon

Amazon values nothing more than its hard-earned reputation as a trustworthy shopping platform. Because of that, the company will go to any length to maintain its reputation by keeping consumers satisfied.

In short, Amazon doesn’t joke about enforcing its customer trust policies. The platform takes severe actions against seller accounts it considers a risk to customer trust.

For instance, Amazon will fraud strike an account for gift card fraud. This occurs when a seller buys inventory on a corresponding selling account and flips them on Amazon.

Furthermore, failing to fulfill your MFN orders on a large scale will lead to your seller account being frauded. On the same note, uploading fake tracking numbers and manipulating your MFN shipping list is another reason for a fraud strike.

Amazon will also fraud strike your account if they detect illegal activities like money laundering activities, or if they detect brushing scams where a seller uses dubious techniques to boost their ratings by creating fake orders.

What should a seller do if they are “frauded”?

No doubt, getting frauded will have devastating consequences for your business. The good news is a fraud strike isn’t the end of the world. There are viable options for appealing to Amazon and reversing your fraud strike.

Option 1: Get professional help

Contacting an Amazon expert is the first thing you should do when your account gets frauded. Appealing a fraud strike on your own is a horrible idea. Not only will it take ages to make any progress, but you risk a permanent account closure if you make mistakes in your appeal.

Hiring a professional who has decades of Amazon strategic account management experience is your best bet of being reinstated. A professional knows how to maneuver the appeal system and strategically escalate whenever the process hits a stonewall.

Remember, time is of the essence. You can’t afford to make mistakes with your appeal. A professional like a full-service Amazon agency will fast-track the appeal process, reducing a fraud strike’s negative, long-term impact.

Option 2: Find out the reason for the fraud strike

Here’s the thing, you lose access to your seller central if your account gets frauded. As a result, you have no way of accessing your account data. There’s no doubt that this is a frustrating experience, especially since the data could help you find out the reason behind the fraud strike.

However, you can get around this by interviewing anyone with access to your seller account. Your findings could be the difference between a permanent ban and reinstating your seller account. Moreover, this process allows you to narrow down possible reasons for being frauded. As a result, your professional account manager can use the information you have gathered to fast-track the appeal process.

Summary

There’s no doubt that your brand can’t maximize its profits without an Amazon seller account. This proves how crucial an Amazon seller account is to the success of your business.

Not only does Amazon give you access to untapped markets, but small businesses can leverage its services to compete with the big brands. With Amazon, your business can overcome the constraints of local markets, therefore, guaranteeing exponential growth.

In short, investing in a professional Amazon strategic account manager is in your best interests. Riverbend Consulting can help keep your account safe from a fraud strike and use our expertise can be leveraged to get your account reinstated if it’s ever frauded.