Beware of Fake Airplane Parts Websites: How BAS Part Sales is Fighting Fake Websites and Online Fraud
Posted by Clinton McJenkin on Nov 11th 2025
Buying airplane parts online should be simple and secure, but the reality is becoming far more dangerous. Across the aviation industry, scammers are creating fake airplane parts websites designed to look like trusted sellers. They steal product photos, copy entire inventories, and mimic checkout systems to collect payments for parts they never ship. These fraudulent sites are getting smarter, faster, and harder to detect, putting honest aircraft owners, mechanics, and shops at serious risk.
Buying airplane parts online should be simple and secure, but the reality is becoming far more dangerous. Across the aviation industry, scammers are creating fake airplane parts websites designed to look like trusted sellers. They steal product photos, copy entire inventories, and mimic checkout systems to collect payments for parts they never ship. These fraudulent sites are getting smarter, faster, and harder to detect, putting honest aircraft owners, mechanics, and shops at serious risk.
At BAS Part Sales, we have been fighting online fraud for years. We have shut down fake Facebook pages, exposed scammers using our name, and strengthened our verified presence on social media. But now, a new wave of cloned aviation e-commerce sites is targeting unsuspecting buyers across the internet. This article breaks down how these scams work, what to look for before you buy, and how BAS is leading the effort to keep the aviation community safe from online fraud.
Follow Us on Social — Because the Stories Don’t End Here:
The Next Front in the Fight Against Airplane Parts Fraud: Fully Cloned E-Commerce Sites Targeting Aviation Buyers
Over the past few years, we at BAS Part Sales have been on the front lines combating fraudsters who impersonate our company on social media. They have stolen our inventory photos, created fake profiles of both BAS and our staff - even using pictures of our children and liking the same Facebook pages to make the fake profiles seem legit - just for the purpose of posting "deals" for high-demand avionics at ridiculously low prices to lure buyers, a.k.a victims.
What started as a social media scam has now evolved into something even more alarming: full website clones designed to look and feel like the real BAS Part Sales online store.
From Social Media Impersonation to Full Website Duplication
In the early days, scammers built fake BAS pages on Facebook and Instagram, posing as our team to trick airplane owners into sending money for parts that did not exist. That is why we became Meta Verified. That little blue check on our Facebook and Instagram pages gave our customers a way to confirm they were talking to the real BAS, not an imposter.
It helped. Fake accounts dropped significantly, and we have been able to shut down many of the impersonators.
That said, the social media scams are still alive and well. They are thriving, just not cloning BAS as often to execute them. We have made it much harder for scammers to use our high-resolution images or copy our social media posts word for word. But that does not mean these scams have gone away. They continue to target aircraft owners and parts buyers every day. These criminals are always adapting, finding new pages, groups, and accounts to run their schemes.
If you see a suspicious BAS profile or post on Facebook or Instagram, reporting it properly makes a difference. Click the three-dot icon on the post or profile, select “Report”, then choose “Impersonating a Business”. When the search box appears, type BAS Part Sales and select the correct, verified BAS page. That process alerts Meta directly and helps shut down fake accounts faster.
Unfortunately, these same criminals have expanded their operations by creating entire fake websites that mirror legitimate aviation parts dealers like us.
A New Breed of Scam: Cloned Websites
These fake sites steal everything in public view: our product photos, inventory listings, descriptions, and even our customer reviews. They repost all of it on fake storefronts that sometimes look almost identical to ours. Some of these fake sites are more sophisticated than others, but ultimately, the scammer can only steal what is publicly visible.
This kind of scam is now made easier by technology, especially AI tools that can automatically copy and reformat vast amounts of text, product images, and even design elements from legitimate sites in seconds. Criminals use these tools to scrape content in bulk, reproduce it on their fake pages, and make the entire site look authentic.
What they cannot steal are the systems behind our website. That includes the security layers that process payments, encrypt customer information, and protect checkout data.
We take extensive measures to keep the real BAS storefront safe and secure. Our website is hosted on a protected platform with advanced firewalls, encryption, and continuous monitoring. Every checkout session runs through secure, encrypted connections to trusted payment processors. Even if a scammer copies the appearance of our site, they have absolutely no access to our customer data, inventory management system, or payment gateway. The fake sites only mimic the outer shell, not the internal systems that make our store legitimate and safe.
We actively report each fake site to all relevant authorities and internet service providers, and we collaborate with other e-commerce developers to share information and strengthen efforts to eliminate this kind of fraud.
It is important to understand that, because of how the internet works, anyone can technically view and copy the public-facing side of a website. Any website that can be viewed in a browser is susceptible to this kind of copy-and-paste job. Scammers can save text, images, and layout elements, then paste them into a template to create a convincing clone.
But that clone is hollow. It has no link to our secure checkout, no BAS customer records, no internal tools, and no access to BAS financial systems. It looks real on the surface, but it is nothing more than a digital counterfeit connected to a fake checkout system controlled by the scam website.
These criminals list expensive avionics or in-demand parts at 25 percent of their true price, take your payment through a working but fake checkout form, and then disappear. You may get an order confirmation email, sometimes even a tracking number, but no part will ever ship.
To make things worse, they host these sites overseas using low-cost, high-turnover domain services. Every time one site is reported and taken down, another pops up almost immediately. It is digital whack-a-mole, and with automation and AI on their side, the criminals can build these sites faster than ever before.
How to Verify You’re on the Real BAS Site
Confirm the Domain. The only official BAS website is www.baspartsales.com. Anything else is fake.
Check for Contact Details. The real BAS site lists our address, phone number, and team emails that end with @baspartsales.com.
Look for the Blue Check. On Facebook and Instagram, our verified Meta accounts display a blue checkmark next to our name. Always follow those verified pages directly from our website links.
If you ever have doubts, call 970-313-4823 or email sales@baspartsales.com
Other Global Brands Are Being Cloned Too
Website cloning and brand impersonation are not isolated problems affecting only small businesses or aviation businesses. They have become a global epidemic fueled by automation, AI, and the ease of launching new domains. In recent years, thousands of well-known companies, from big-name retailers to financial institutions, have had their websites copied and republished by scammers trying to trick customers into fake transactions. The data shows that this type of fraud is growing at an alarming rate and impacts organizations of every size, including trusted aviation brands like BAS Part Sales.
- According to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) data, nearly half of all fraud reports in 2023 were business-impersonation scams. Specifically, about 48% of fraud reports involved an entity pretending to be a business or government. (Source)
- In 2024 over 30,000 lookalike / impersonating domains were identified targeting major global brands, and about one-third of those were confirmed malicious. (Source)
- In the “State of Brand Impersonation” report by Akamai Technologies for 2022-2023:
- 1,270,883 phishing attacks observed in Q3 2022 alone.
- 15% of phishing emails impersonated a brand.
- 42% of surveyed businesses saw an increase in spoofed/impersonated web domains year-over-year.
- The UK’s Investment Association noted that cloning-type scams (fake websites, fake email impersonation) jumped by 57% in 2024 compared to the previous year. (Source)
What these real-world cases show is that the scam we’re facing at BAS Part Sales isn’t unique. Major consumer brands, global retail giants, and well-known e-commerce companies are all being targeted by website-cloning and brand-impersonation schemes using the same tactics fraudsters are using to clone our site and try to trick aviation-parts buyers. The threat is global, growing, and enabled by technology, and nobody is immune. Well-known brands have been impacted by this very same scam, such as Nike, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Birkenstock, Chanel, Google, Apple, and more.
Most Victims Don't Pursue Recovery, Here's Why They Should
We have encouraged known victims, people who have lost real money through both social media scams and these cloned websites, to go back to their payment providers and demand action. That might mean filing a fraud claim with Venmo, PayPal, their credit card company, or their bank. Unfortunately, most victims do not.
Many just want to forget about it and move on, even when it is hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Some are embarrassed, some think it will not matter, and some do not know where to start. But taking action matters.
According to the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, only about 4 percent of victims worldwide recover any of their losses (gasa.org, 2024). In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission reported that consumers lost more than 12.5 billion dollars to fraud in 2024, the highest total on record (ftc.gov, 2025).
That is staggering. And it shows why every single person who has been defrauded should report it and try to recover what they can. Even a few reports can help flag and shut down a scam faster.
How to Protect Yourself Before You Buy
Here are the steps every aircraft owner, mechanic, or aviation enthusiast should take before making a purchase online.
#1
The real BAS website is www.baspartsales.com. We do not use any alternate domains or names like “mart,” “store,” “shop,” or “.net.” If it is not our exact address, it is not us.
#2
Fake sites often have very shallow information in these sections. The “Contact Us” page may list only an email form, no address, or a generic phone number. The “About” section might be vague or missing entirely. Our site has a full physical address, staff names, company history, and contact information. If the site does not, that is a warning sign.
#3
The only legitimate BAS accounts on Facebook and Instagram have the Meta Verified blue check. If the site links to a social page that looks new or has no verification, it is likely fake.
#4
BAS never uses Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, Google Voice, or any other free public communication tools. Every legitimate BAS email comes from an @baspartsales.com address. We will never ask for Venmo, PayPal, Zelle, or wire payments outside our online checkout or directly from you via chat or Facebook Messenger. While we do accept wire payments, Venmo, and PayPal through our official checkout, those must always start through communication with a BAS representative using an @baspartsales.com email address or through the secure checkout on our website. If someone claims to be from BAS but gives you a Gmail or other personal address, it is not us. Stop immediately and report it.
#5
Many fake sites scrape our listings word for word, which means they often include “BAS” in the product description. If the site you are on is not ours but mentions BAS in the text, that is a clear sign of stolen content.
#6
We answer the phone. Our number is 970-313-4823, and our email is sales@baspartsales.com. If you ever question whether a listing or site is real, call or email us directly. We will verify it for you.
If You Have Already Been Scammed
If you have sent money to a fake site or profile, do not let embarrassment stop you from fighting back. Act quickly and document everything.
- Contact your bank, credit card company, or payment service immediately and request a reversal.
- Save all communication, order confirmations, and screenshots.
- File a report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).
- If you paid by PayPal, Venmo, or another app, file a dispute or claim within their system right away.
- Change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication on all accounts.
- If you gave out personal information, monitor your credit and consider placing a fraud alert.
Only about 15 percent of fraud victims report to law enforcement (Aura/IdentityGuard, 2024 ). That is one reason scams keep spreading. Reporting matters because it protects you and helps others avoid the same trap.;
What BAS Is Doing About It
We are taking every possible step to shut down these cloned websites. That includes filing copyright and trademark infringement claims, sending DMCA takedown requests, and working with hosting companies and registrars to block repeat offenders. We have also implemented digital watermarking on some of our product images to make theft easier to detect.
Ultimately, the best defense is awareness. The aviation community is tight-knit, and word travels fast. When customers share warnings, flag suspicious listings, and double-check before buying, it makes a real difference.
Final Thoughts
Fraud has always existed, but the tools available to scammers today make it faster and easier than ever to steal. Whether it is a fake Facebook page, a cloned e-commerce site, or a scammer pretending to be one of our sales reps, the tactics all rely on the same thing: getting you to move too fast and not verify the details.
Slow down. Look closely. Check the footer. Verify the contact information. Call us if you are unsure.
Together, we can protect the aviation community, one honest transaction at a time.
BAS Part Sales
Battling Imposters: How BAS is Combating Fraud on Facebook and Instagram
We recently added the little blue check verification to the BAS Facebook page and Instagram account, called Meta Verified, as we work diligently to combat the fraud and BAS imposters on both Facebook and IG.
Social Media Scams and Airplane Parts, What You Need To Know
Aviation parts scams are alive and well on social media. We hear reports all the time about people sending money to a scammer via Venmo, who is posing as an agent of an actual airplane parts business.