- I would never rely on a seller's return policy as a way to avoid fraud. Too much trouble and risk that should be avoided in the first place.

- Buy from reputable sellers who have a strong history of selling authentic shoes

- Watch out for people who sell multiples of very rare shoes

- If the price is too good to be true, it probably is -- however there are fake sneakers that are priced as high as authentic ones, in an attempt to appear legit

- Pictures do NOT tell the entire story -- many fake sellers simply use pics of authentic ones. Make sure they have "tagged" pics of what they're selling to show they're actually in their possession.

- The average consumer will not be able to tell if a shoe is fake by the stitching, shape, etc. Even I can't tell on some models, especially non-Nikes.