The explosion of the internet has created a new venue for scam artists. Bogus government web sites are proliferating. Unsuspecting individuals often end up paying for “government” services that are legitimately free.

Many of these bogus government sites are copy cats of the real federal sites. They use language that mimics the official site. It’s often very difficult to distinguish the genuine government web site from the imposter site. However, the bogus sites have an Achilles’ Heel and it’s easy to spot. It’s their web address.

.gov and other suffixes

Only internet sites that end in “.gov” are official federal government web sites. No other entities can legitimately use this suffix.

Many non-governmental web sites provide useful information. You can identify them because the web site address ends in “.com,” “.net,” “.org” or another suffix other than “.gov.” Anyone can purchase a “.com” or other suffix but only the federal government can use “.gov.” The same is true for military web sites that end in “.mil.”

Sites in the U.S. do not have any additional suffix after “.com” or another suffix. If a two letter suffix appears, such as “.de” or “.za,” that’s a sign that the site is outside the U.S. (“.de” signifies Germany and “.za” signifies South Africa.) Many people are surprised to learn that the popular “’.tv” suffix is assigned to the tiny south Pacific country of Tuvalu, which auctioned off its rights to the suffix some years ago.

The rules get murky for state and local governments. Most state government web sites end in “.us” Local government web sites are all over the place. Some have “.us” at the end of their address but others end in “.com” or another suffix.

Warning signs

Individuals need to be aware of web sites that try to mislead people into thinking they are official government web sites. If a so-called government web site tries to charge you for services that are otherwise free, this is a red flag that the site is bogus. Be wary of sites that ask you for personal or biographical information. Scam artists use this information for identity theft and fraud.

Also be cautious of sites that claim to be endorsed by the government. Government agencies do not endorse, recommend or sponsor any information or material posted on sites other than their own sites.

On the federal level, the problem of bogus web sites is especially prevalent with sites masquerading as official IRS sites and immigration sites. Consumers have been duped into paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for bogus tax and immigration services. Frequently, the victims are those individuals who can least afford the losses.