WebVetted Beta
Recommendation
Caution
Overall Summary
Suspicious
Why we think so

Dermstore.com is a long‑standing U.S.-facing online retailer (domain registered 1999) that sells dermatologist-recommended skincare and beauty brands. Traffic and technology signals look like a legitimate e-commerce site: ~2.1–3.2M monthly visits, mainstream payment processors (PayPal, Stripe, Adyen, AfterPay), and a professional marketing/analytics stack. However, multiple consumer complaint sources and a low Google Places rating point to recurring customer-service, refund, and fulfillment problems. Overall: an established business with real infrastructure, but notable reputation and service red flags — treat purchases cautiously and verify product authorization for expensive or medical-grade items. 🛡️

Confidence Score
83%

Risk Insights

🛒

Established retailer, shaky customer experience

Domain from 1999, large traffic and major payment vendors — real e-commerce setup.
Consistent complaints about refunds and fulfillment reduce trust for large purchases.
Consider small test orders and strong payment protections.

No technical threats found

No Google Safe Browsing or crypto-blacklist hits.
Valid SSL and standard DNS/MX/TXT records present.

Contradictory Signals

Signals indicate a real business that nonetheless has recurring operational or customer-service problems; the technical integrity doesn't eliminate reputational risk.

Signal A: High traffic, reputable payment providers and industry news (supports legitimacy)

Signal B: Large volume of consumer complaints and a very low local rating (1.1/5) (undermines trust)

Category Scores

Identity 85/100
Reputation 45/100
Technical 92/100
Content 80/100
Legal 60/100
Business Validity 88/100

Red Flags & Warnings

  • Multiple consumer complaint collections and review sites report repeated refund, delivery, and customer-service failures.
  • Very low Google Places rating (1.1/5) for the corporate listing, which suggests recent local dissatisfaction or targeted negative reviews.
  • Past Proposition 65 settlement (2020) over chemical exposure linked to some product kits, a legal compliance concern.

🔎 Detailed Checks & Analysis

Domain age & WHOIS

Score: 90/100
Passed

"Registrant details are privacy-redacted (common), but DNS, MX, and TXT records look consistent with an established retailer (mail via Mimecast, SPF records, site verifications)."

Reason: Domain registered in 1999 with normal registrar records and standard nameservers; long history supports legitimacy.

Traffic & engagement (SimilarWeb / Alexa)

Score: 88/100
Passed

"Traffic is heavily US-weighted (~90%); direct and search traffic dominate, which is normal for a brand/retailer."

Reason: High monthly visits (~2.1–3.2M) and typical e-commerce engagement metrics (pages per visit ~3, time on site ~100s).

Technology & payment infrastructure

Score: 94/100
Passed

"Presence of multiple reputable payment processors and fraud-prevention/email providers reduces risk of simple scam storefront behavior."

Reason: Uses mainstream CDN, security and payment vendors (Cloudflare/Fastly, Adyen, Stripe, PayPal), indicating professional operations.

Customer reviews & complaint volume

Score: 35/100
Failed

"SiteJabber/BBB-style complaints (summarized via search data) show many unresolved issues and low ratings; this is the primary reputational concern."

Reason: Significant negative reviews reported on aggregated consumer platforms describing refunds, delivery problems, and alleged deceptive practices.

Legal / regulatory flags

Score: 60/100
Failed

"Settlement occurred with a supplier/party connected to Dermstore product kits; while settled, it is a material notice for product-safety buyers."

Reason: A 2020 Proposition 65 settlement related to DEHP exposure in some kits indicates a previous compliance issue.

Phishing / malware / blacklist checks

Score: 95/100
Passed

"Absence of active malware or phishing flags reduces immediate technical risk for site visitors."

Reason: No Google Safe Browsing matches or crypto-scam blacklist hits were found in this scan.

Brand / trademark conflicts

Score: 78/100
Passed

"This was a narrow search; absence of a match is not a full clearance for all possible trademark issues."

Reason: USPTO quick query returned no direct trademark conflicts for the exact query string searched.

Contact & location transparency

Score: 80/100
Passed

"Presence of press email, phone, and social profiles supports traceability, but local reviews are poor which lowers trust."

Reason: Site lists corporate address and phone; Google Places shows a physical office listing.

Business signals (news, acquisitions)

Score: 86/100
Passed

"Multiple news sources and PR items document corporate activity and partnerships."

Reason: Press and industry coverage— including THG acquisition reporting—support that Dermstore is a real retail business with industry presence.

Your Next Steps

  • 1
    Before purchasing, verify expensive or medical-grade brands directly with the brand (e.g., ask the brand if Dermstore is an authorized seller).
  • 2
    Prefer payment methods with buyer protection (credit card or PayPal) and keep receipts/screenshots; consider opening a dispute if a refund is denied.
  • 3
    Check multiple review sources (BBB, SiteJabber, Trustpilot) for recent trends on refunds and fulfillment for the specific product you want.
  • 4
    For high-value orders, test with a small purchase first to confirm fulfillment and authenticity.
  • 5
    If you encounter fraud (charged but no delivery, unauthorized charges), report to your card issuer, the platform where you found the listing, and to the FTC/consumer protection agency.

Evidence & Citations