A fake website is impersonating our dealership
Move fast and in parallel - cloned dealer sites exist to catch buyers during a window, and every day up is another wire transfer at risk under your name.
1. Capture evidence first
Screenshot the site with URL and date. Note where a buyer encountered it (a search ad, a marketplace link, a text). Clones change or vanish after the first complaint.
2. Report the infrastructure in parallel
- Host abuse desk - find it via ICANN lookup; report the page as impersonating your dealership with copied inventory.
- Registrar - same lookup; near-name domains used for payment solicitation get suspended at the registrar level.
- Google Safe Browsing - report the page so browsers warn buyers before they wire money. Highest leverage per minute.
- DMCA for your inventory - your photos and listing text are copyrighted; a takedown notice removes the assets even while other arguments continue.
- IC3 + state consumer protection - ic3.gov; your report as the impersonated business builds the case.
3. Warn buyers on your real site
A pinned banner - "our only website is [domain]; we never take wire or crypto for a vehicle you have not seen in person" - converts confused buyers into early reporters and stops losses.
Common questions
Q: The clone is on an offshore host that ignores everyone. Now what? A: Safe Browsing flagging plus registrar suspension usually neutralizes it - a warning interstitial reaches buyers even if the page stays up.
Q: Should I name the clone domain publicly? A: Warn by naming YOUR real domain, not the clone - publicity gives the clone search traffic.
Q: How do we find clones before buyers do? A: Near-name domains register before the scam runs. A free scan checks fresh domains and known clone hosts for your name and inventory now; daily monitoring watches the certificate stream.
Check your own dealership now. The free scan looks for cloned replicas using your name, inventory, or listings - no account, private report. Continuous monitoring: Dealer Watch from $29/month.
Related answers
- Scammers are impersonating our closed dealership
- Is this dealership website real? A buyer's check
- Someone registered a near-name domain of our dealership
Dealer Watch provides monitoring assistance, not legal advice. Findings are similarity signals that require your confirmation - they are not accusations about any website. Where an external service has flagged a page, we cite that flag; we never make such claims ourselves.