I accidentally bought a counterfeit backpack on Amazon. Now, I know how to avoid sneaky fake products.

Now, when I buy name-brand items, I shy away from third-party sellers because it’s harder to guarantee a product will be 100% authentic.

Next time I plan to buy something on Amazon, I’ll check who’s selling it. I can do this by looking under the “Buy Now” button on each listing.

In the future, I’ll also spend a few extra minutes checking the ratings of any seller I’m thinking of ordering from. Sellers with only a few reviews, many one-star reviews, or comments that mention fake items, defective products, or lots of lost packages are all red flags to me.

Lastly, buyers can also report counterfeit products to Amazon Customer Service.

An Amazon representative told BI, “If you received a product from a third-party seller that you don’t believe is authentic, we recommend customers contact the customer support team for a full refund of the order, stop using an item immediately, and dispose of it.”