Sales claims and facts

Fourteen claims

• Misleading · what the seller says

  Without a VPN, everything you do online is wide open to hackers.

  Without a separate service, your traffic is visible to anyone on the same network or anywhere along the way.

  What is true

  HTTPS protects the contents of ordinary browsing between your browser and the website. A VPN can hide traffic from the local network, but it cannot make a scam site or malware safe.

  Do this: Pay attention to browser connection warnings and check the site address before signing in or paying.

• Misleading · what the seller says

  Public wifi is dangerous.

  On a cafe or airport network, anyone can read your passwords and your card details.

  What is true

  HTTPS protects content between your browser and the website on a public network too. The network owner may still see connection details, and a fake network or scam site remains a risk.

  Do this: Choose the correct network, heed browser warnings and check the site address before signing in.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  Sponsored: this service hides you completely.

  The person who made the video says they use the service themselves and promises it makes you unidentifiable online.

  What is true

  There is no such thing as perfect anonymity. Logging in to your own account identifies you, whichever server your traffic passes through.

  Do this: Treat a sponsored recommendation as advertising and verify its main claims with independent sources.

• Fraud · what the seller says

  A virus has been detected on your device. Call this number.

  A web page or a pop-up says it has found an infection and tells you to call a support number straight away.

  What is true

  An ordinary web page's own alert is not the operating system's virus scan. A phone number shown on the page is not a safe route to support.

  Do this: Close the tab. Do not call the number, and do not let anyone connect to your computer remotely.

• Misleading · what the seller says

  The protection that comes with Windows isn't enough.

  The protection built into the operating system is a basic level, and real safety needs a paid package.

  What is true

  In an independent test laboratory's June 2026 round, Windows' own Defender scored full marks for protection, and so did ten paid products.

  Do this: Check that Windows' own protection is switched on and that updates install automatically. For most people that is enough.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  Your old router is dangerous. Buy a new one.

  Your router is so old that it is a risk, and the only fix is to buy a new one right now.

  What is true

  This is sometimes true. On 7 May 2025 the FBI warned that criminals use routers the manufacturer no longer updates. What decides it is update support, not the age of the device as such.

  Do this: Find the model number of the device and check on the manufacturer's support page whether it still gets updates. Switch remote management off while you are there.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  This device protects every smart device in your home.

  A box you plug into the network watches the traffic and protects every device in the home at once.

  What is true

  A network-security device may monitor or restrict traffic, but it cannot install a missing manufacturer software fix on another device.

  Do this: First check device support and the isolation controls already in your router. Then compare the extra functions the separate product provides.

• Misleading · what the seller says

  Without identity protection your details get sold on the dark web.

  A service with a monthly fee stops your personal details being misused and keeps watch over you around the clock.

  What is true

  Services vary. Finland's free voluntary credit ban makes it harder to take out credit in another person's name, while paid monitoring may provide alerts and extra services.

  Do this: Set up a vapaaehtoinen luottokielto (voluntary credit ban) in the positiivinen luottotietorekisteri (positive credit register) kept by Verohallinto, the Finnish Tax Administration. It costs nothing.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  The offer is only valid for the length of this call.

  The price disappears if you do not decide now. Thinking it over costs you money.

  What is true

  In most Finnish phone-sales situations, a contract binds only after you accept the later offer in writing. The law has two exceptions.

  Do this: Ask for the offer in writing and end the call. If the offer disappears at that, it was built to disappear.

• Fraud · what the seller says

  I am calling from your operator's security department.

  The caller represents a company you know, and has information about your subscription or your device.

  What is true

  The number on your screen can be faked, including a number that appears to belong to a company you know. A job title does not verify the caller.

  Do this: End the call and ring back on a number you look up yourself, from a bill or from the company's website.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  Your camera's recordings are only safe with a cloud subscription.

  Without the monthly fee the recordings disappear, and the camera is of no real use.

  What is true

  Recording depends on the model. If local storage meets your needs, the subscription adds a separate copy and the features included in the service.

  Do this: Check the camera's manual for whether it records locally. Then decide whether you need a copy somewhere else.

• Misleading · what the seller says

  Without an extended warranty a repair costs hundreds.

  When the warranty ends you are on your own, and a breakdown costs more than the extra cover does now.

  What is true

  The end of the warranty does not end the seller's responsibility. Statutory liability for defects continues after it, and the law does not tie its length to a number of years.

  Do this: Ask the seller what this warranty gives you beyond the law. If the answer is vague, do not buy.

• Fraud · what the seller says

  Pay with a gift card, it is the fastest way.

  The payment has to happen right now, and a gift card is the fastest or the only way. Often you are asked to read the card's code out over the phone.

  What is true

  An authority, bank or technical support service does not collect payment through a gift-card code. The value can be spent quickly and recovery is often difficult.

  Do this: End the call. If you have already read out the code, ring the shop that sold the card at once and report it to the police.

• Sales pitch · what the seller says

  Do not tell anyone about this, it is a special offer.

  The benefit is personal, and talking about it would spoil it or be unfair to other customers.

  What is true

  A seller's demand for secrecy prevents independent checking and is a reason to pause the decision.

  Do this: Tell one person straight away. It is the fastest way to test an offer.

Checked 6 August 2026