BURY Market has helped to expose the dangers of online shopping security.

The Market joined ITV for a 'sting' operation on the Tonight show, with a former police officer setting up a fake stall offering free Christmas wrapping paper in return for likes to his facebook page, to see how careless people can be with private information on social media.

After liking the page cyber-security expert Stephen Burke could scour the internet for information the customers, gleaned freely and publicly from their Facebook profiles, which he relayed back through a hidden earpiece.

Angela Lomax, head of trading standards at Bury Council, said: “Research shows that 68 per cent of online shoppers leave out at least one simple safety check when buying goods on the internet, such as looking for signs that the website is using a secure, encrypted connection, looking at the returns policy or searching for reviews of the seller.

"With most Brits planning to shop online for presents this festive season, Trading Standards is advising people to take their time and do their research before pressing ‘purchase’.

"Just under one in three people (28 per cent) said they bought items from social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, or websites promoted through these platforms.

"Purchasing products via social media sites is notoriously risky as they are awash with misleading advertising, counterfeit and unsafe products, subscription traps and many other scams.

"Trading standards advise people to observe a Buy Safe Checklist including searching for reviews of the product or seller, looking at grammar and spelling on the website, seeing if the seller has a landline number, finding out where their head office is based and ensuring that the website has a secure connection.

"Consumers are also advised to report concerns to Citizen’s Advice consumer service.

"The old saying of “If it looks to be good to be true, it usually is!” still applies.”