I recently stumbled on this site which showed prices too good to be true: thebike-shops dot com
They seem to have copied over the Condor cycles web interface and product line, with ridiculous prices in many cases.

Their contact page lists the following address:
Google street view does not seem to show anything legitimate there.

The only other contact info is the admin email (admin at keenonlineshop.com) which a quick google search reveals as the root of multiple scam e-commerce sites around the web.

I placed an inquiry with the official Condor Cycles folks in the UK (https://www.condorcycles.com/) and got this reply:
Just wanted to share this info so others don't get tripped up.

Good info!

I like this was at least this was a warning and not a this site looks really super sketchy but I want to buy from it should I do that? Which is a common thread around here. It is always simple buy from an authorized retailer with a proper brick and mortar location. If the price is too good to be true it is too good to be true and there is no need to get into the headaches of scams just to save a couple bucks on some random part.

I found there are a ton of scam sites that are linked to google. I mean I bought a tub of protein powder from one and it was fake got a refund from PayPal but still. not sure if they are just generated as needed when a product is searched for. .

Happens, Glory Cycles in Greenville SC went out of business in September, another site using their name popped up with stupid obviously fake prices.

Could only be found using google search.

.

Just for comparison, I searched Zipp wheels last night. Found a site that was listing prices for a set of 303s at $600 with a sale price of $98. NFW that's legit. The site looks like it's straight from Zipp, but if you go to the Sram site, they link to Zipp and it's completely different.
thezippstore dot com/zipp-gravel-cyclocross-wheels-303-nsw-carbon-wheel-tubeless/

I'm not sure we need to be posting links to scammers websites for them. They pay people to do that

that's why I trust netcraft.
I clicked the link and immediatly this appeared

I surf the internet with impudence. At least when I'm using firefox.
Want to do what I do? Install firefox and....

Posting fake websites with ridiculously low prices is the current favorite among scammers. If you were to go into it you'd either see a fake 'order form' where you'd enter your info and submit, and the scammers get your CC numbers they can use for a few days to purchase stuff or get cash advances. There's a more sophisticated one where they use legitimate 'back-office' processing companies (they do all the boring data,credit card, and verification for retailers) where the scammers have infiltrated those companies so they can download your CC numbers and other vital info to use themselves or sell on the dark web. If it seems fake, it probably is, so call the company (if they list a phone #) or just pay a few more $$ to a legit company for the product.

The question/concern comes up often as more and more scam sites are created. Here's a test that you can apply. I don't do business if they raise any red flags.

Phone Number: Is there a phone number prominently displayed on their home page. Red Flag if there is not.

Address: Do they have a physical address posted? If not Red Flag. If they do have an address, what does it look like on Google street view or satellite map? Red Flag if it doesn't look like a business.

Inventory: Do they have a lot of hard to find stuff or too good to be true pricing? Red Flag if they do.

Business History: When you Google the business name with the words review and complaint, what do you find? Little footprint or a lot of negative reviews or BBB complaints is a red flag.

Payment Method: Crypto, Venmo, Pay Pal friends and family only? Red Flag.

Site Language: Do you notice language errors or irregularities? Red Flag if there are errors and oddities.

Not really sure it's such a bad thing to post these links in a thread titled "beware of scam sites". I'm pretty sure they're not paying people to warn potential victims about fraudulent charges. If anything, we should have a sticky listing all the bogus sites.

Well, people spend actual money to pay people to post links here and it has nothing to do with hoping anyone will click on them most of the time. I'm breaking the links, people can figure out how to look at the sites if they feel motivated enough. There are tons of scam sites now for every little bike related business. I'm sure they go after other niche areas as well, but I have seen it a lot for things that seem like it just wouldn't be worth their time. I guess bike parts are in the sweet spot where you can offer huge discounts and still get a decent amount of money from the people you are scamming.

I don't mind if people give the name scam website if they feel the need. Please don't make me edit it to break the link.

I got taken. I was looking for some ResPro Hi-Viz ankle bands. The best I've ever found. They are from the UK, and no one imports them to the US. I wanted another. I found them on the thebike-shops.com site, which appeared to be American. I placed an order. No acknowledgement. I later inquired. No response.

Then my credit card number was used for some purchases. Starting small at Shake Shack. Then a little larger, and the credit card company stopped it. I can see what algorithm they used to detect the fraud. I have never owned a TV. I have never purchased any online streaming service. The charge was $105 for some online movie subscription. It was clearly something I have never purchased before. And the fraud department knew it.

The site is finally down. I looked for it at archive.org. Not there. They must have used a robots.txt file to not have it archived.

as several have said above, if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.

the endless quest for the best deal and lowest price will generate frauds and scams in any industry.

patronize known good sellers: your local shop, or trusted online sellers. I personally like Ben's Bike Shop on ebay, or Cambria Bicycle Outfitters.

saving a couple dollars is a high price to pay for an item that never arrives, or (worse) having your ID stolen.

Also there are some sameless counterfeit parts out there. So beware.

/markp

The price was not really low. The attraction was it was the only seller of these ankle bands in the US. And would save me the hassle of importing them. None of the places you suggest sell these ankle bands.

Welcome to the forum and sorry you got scammed. Amazing that someone would run a scam based on those ankle reflector straps. Those ankle straps do look nice, too bad no U.S. shops sell them. Maybe write the company and ask for assistance? They don't seem to list the straps on their site. But they do have warmers to keep your tyres warm.

It looks like the bands have been discontinued. If you look at the rest of the Respro line, you see that something for bicyclists doesn't fit with their main product line. I bet the helmet bands disappear soon.

I did email them. 24-48 hours for a response.

Send me some money and I will cut you in on my import business.

Seriously...Tyre warmers?

I'm sure it's been brought up before on another thread but I've got one more to add to the list of scam websites: shopchrisking dot com.
I was cruising the internet for a chris king headset a while back and came across that site offering unbelievably low prices, as in I didn't believe it for a second. The site looks relatively legit to the untrained eye. Somebody took a hot minute to do their best to copy the legitimate site. A closer look though and the photos and text don't appear as crisp as you would expect. I already had a feeling it was a scam but a serious red flag was a couple sides of the company logo on the home page was cropped slightly. Address on the website goes to a Walmart in Las Vegas.
Those who buy Chris King parts regularly will know that the parts are effectively the same price no matter where you go, they just don't do crazy sales and have a pretty good control on prices. There's only so many authorized vendors plus buying direct. Don't expect any new retailers either anytime soon, they are apparently not accepting applications for new retailers at this time.