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A series of fake websites purporting to sell popular Nobull sportswear have emerged ahead of the Christmas sales period, with shoppers being scammed into making purchases on these sites.
The American brand, popular among CrossFit enthusiasts, is promoted by NFL star Tom Brady, who became an investor this year.
But Googling 'Nobull UK' returns several fake sites among the top results, including nobull-shoes-uk.co and uknobull.com, both registered earlier this year. The sites have since been removed, but not before misleading some buyers.
Misspelling the name slightly and searching for “UK No Bull” returned a fake site as the top result, according to research by The Independent.
Finding fake websites so easily on the world's largest search engine is likely to enrage activists who fought to force internet giants to crack down on fraud after the companies resisted making protections part of it. of the new Online Safety Law.
The sites were created to look like the official Nobull site, but without contact details or company information. They offer attractive prices, with around a third off sports shoes and other products.
One shopper, who did not want to be identified for fear of being targeted by more scammers, was looking for deals on the clothing as stock was low on the company's actual website. she said the independent who had problems with a copycat site and spent more than £100. She is trying to get her money back from her credit card company.
The professionalism of the site, the use of the company's branding and its prominence in Google searches meant that she only suspected there was a problem when no email confirmation was sent to them.
Rocío Concha, which one? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “Recent Which? research found that more than 6 million people in the UK have been victims of scams on platforms – many of which are owned by tech giants – in the last 12 months. and this includes search engines like Google, where fraud was found to be common.
“Under the current Online Safety Act timeline, platforms covered by the law's fraudulent advertising obligations cannot be held liable until 2027. Which one? believes Ofcom should put this into effect much sooner.
“The Fraud Minister must also ensure a more coordinated approach between the government and the technology, banking and telecommunications sectors to stop the fraud epidemic.”
One of the sites has been reviewed by shoppers on Trustpilot, with four one-star reviews after shoppers received no products or were sent cheap fake jewelry instead of sportswear. The website owner has not responded to the reviews.
Web hosts like GoDaddy were found to be selling copycat web domains with names like nobull-shoes-uk.com for as little as a penny.
New rules in the UK under the Online Safety Act protect users against fraud, but they are only being implemented slowly.
The law was approved last year, but work is underway to have it come into force from 2025.
Advisers working on the law say search engines are one of the main routes for scammers to reach victims and getting companies like Google to remove links would help protect buyers.
A Google spokesperson said: “Our advanced anti-spam systems help keep Google Search 99 percent spam-free, despite spammers' ever-evolving attempts. We have clear spam policies against deceptive tactics and when we find behavior that violates our policies, we take action. “We will continue to investigate and take action against any site that violates our policies.”
While a search by the Independent returned a scam website first in a search, the company said its own searches placed Nobull's legitimate site first and the fake one second.
GoDaddy, Namecheap and the site owners have been contacted for comment.
Nobull did not respond to a request for comment through its press office, but when asked in a direct message through its official X account whether other websites should be trusted, it said: “NOBULL shoes and clothing They are available exclusively online through our official website. .”
