AI refund fraud, explained for merchants
Plain-English guides to AI-generated fake damage photos, refund fraud detection and the photo evidence gap in Shopify returns. Researched from public seller reports and re-tested against real AI-edited images — no vendor claims taken at face value.
AI-Generated Fake Damage Photos: The Refund Scam Hitting Online Stores in 2026
How buyers use AI image editors to fake damage on real product photos and claim refunds, the public evidence that it is happening, and what merchants can actually do about it.
· 9 min read
How to Spot an AI-Edited Damage Photo: 7 Checks You Can Run Yourself
Seven practical checks — metadata, error level analysis, noise, frequency artefacts, duplicate matching, physical logic and a second angle — for deciding whether a refund photo was edited by AI.
· 10 min read
Shopify Return Fraud in 2026: The Photo Evidence Gap Nobody Filled
Shopify's free native returns flow collects no photos, and the returns apps that do collect them gate API access behind $99–$155/month plans. Here is what that leaves small merchants with.
· 8 min read