The total solar eclipse is just days away. And if you’re one of the millions of people in North America planning to witness the natural phenomenon, making a last minute Amazon Prime order for eclipse glasses may not be the best idea.
The American Astronomical Society’s (AAS) Solar Eclipse Task Force issued a warning in late March that it has found evidence that counterfeit and fake eclipse glasses and viewers have entered the market.
An unidentified factory in China has been printing on its eclipse viewing products that they were manufactured by American Paper Optics, a major U.S.-based maker of safe eclipse viewers. While the AAS says these most recent counterfeits do “appear to be safe,” the society warns against buying counterfeit products as they are not guaranteed to be of consistent quality.
Additionally, the AAS has also found that one or more unidentified Chinese factories have been labeling their products as being made by the legitimate manufacturer Cangnan County Qiwei Craft Co. Some of these products even include printed logos of Qiwei’s primary North American distributor, Solar Eclipse International, Canada. The AAS has determined that some of these products are not only counterfeit, they are also unsafe for viewing an eclipse.
To make it easier for consumers to buy legit and safe solar eclipse glasses, the AAS has compiled a list over a hundred producers, distributors, and retailers it has vetted that offer lab-tested glasses. Major retailers on the list include Walmart, Warby Parker, Lowe’s, and even 7-Eleven.
Notably missing from the list are a few e-commerce giants.
“We do not recommend searching for eclipse glasses on Amazon, eBay, Temu, or any other online marketplace and buying from whichever vendor offers the lowest price,” the AAS said. “Before you buy a solar viewer or filter online, we recommend that you make sure that the seller is identified on the site and the seller is listed on this page.”
When Quartz reached out to Amazon, eBay, and Temu to find out what these companies are doing to protect its costumers from fraudulent solar eclipse viewers, eBay was the only one to respond.
“eBay only allows the sale of eclipse glasses verified by the American Astronomical Society to meet international safety standards,” eBay told Quartz in an emailed statement.
The company added that it uses “multiple layers of AI technology, professionally trained eBay investigators, and buyer protection programs” to ensure goods sold on its platform are authentic.
If you’ve already purchased glasses or viewers from retailers not on the AAS list, the group advises that this doesn’t necessarily mean they’re unsafe. There are methods available to test their safety.