Is eBooks Basic Legit or Scam? Complete Review

eBooks Basic is a website that markets itself as a student-run online bookstore selling digital textbooks at a flat rate (about $30 each). It claims to deliver “original” publisher ebooks instantly by email after purchaseebooksbasic.com. 

In this deep dive, we analyze whether the platform is truly legitimate or a scam. We examine how the site works, what users say (Reddit, Trustpilot, forums), and technical trust indicators (domain age, SSL, policies). Our aim is to present a balanced, evidence-based verdict on “Is eBooks Basic Legit?”.

What is an eBook’s Basic?

• Student-run budget store: The site’s homepage describes itself as a “dynamic team of young students” providing textbooks affordablyebooksbasic.com. It says eBooks are sold at a fixed price to help students (every title costs around $29–30).
  
• Product offering: eBooks Basic Catalogs itself as selling college textbooks in PDF format. The site touts that its books are “original textbook products from the publisher,”ebooksbasic.com, implying authorized content. In practice, it simply emails a downloadable PDF after payment.
  
• Instant delivery promise: The site advertises instant access. For example, its FAQ states that the download link is “available immediately after successful checkout” (or within 1–12 hours for special titles). The homepage likewise boasts “Usually we ship in 1 minute, some special products … 1–12 hours” at ebooksbasic.com. Users confirm that orders typically arrive in minutes.
  
• Uniform pricing: Notably, every ebook is sold at the same price. Industry reviews point out that “ebooksbasic.com offers e-textbooks at a fixed price of $30” for all titles. This flat-pricing model is unusual (and arguably suspicious) since textbooks normally vary widely in price.
  

In summary, eBooks Basic presents itself as a discount ebook store run by students, selling downloadable textbooks for $30 each with rapid digital deliveryebooksbasic.com. It claims “permanent ownership” of DRM-free files, you “own the book forever”. Whether these claims hold up is the key question.

How the Site Works and What It Offers

1. Ordering & Payment: Customers find a book (via search or menu) and place an order. The checkout process accepts common methods (credit card, PayPal). The site’s FAQ reassures buyers that payment is handled by standard processors (“we also don’t store any payment information”). In practice, many buyers pay via PayPal. Several users report that the PayPal receipt shows the seller as an unrelated name (for example, one user saw “Nguyen Khac Ban” as the payee). This indicates payments may go through a private account rather than a corporate merchant account, which is a transparency issue.
   
2. Delivery: Upon successful payment, eBooks Basic immediately sends a download link by email. The customer gets a receipt, then a link to a ZIP or PDF file. Both the site and users confirm this quick turnaround. For example, one reviewer noted, “I received the downloadable link to my email as promised immediately after purchasing”. Another said their book was “downloadable as soon as I paid”. In practice, dozens of customers report getting the full book file (often hundreds of pages) within minutes.
   
3. Product: The purchased item is a digital PDF (or ZIP of PDF/EPUB). The site emphasizes that ebooks come “without DRM protection”, meaning you own the copy forever and can print it. (In other words, it is not a rental). Users confirm that the files are full, high-quality scans of textbooks. One customer praised a 640-page book that downloaded easily. After downloading, customers can read or print the book on any device. eBooks Basic claims to have “original” editions, but it makes no mention of licenses or publisher partnerships.
   

Overall, the workflow is straightforward: pay $30, get a textbook PDF by email within minutes, and keep it permanently. The site promises no hidden fees beyond the per-book price and no recurring charges. In an ordered step format:

1. Payment: At checkout, you pay ~$30 via PayPal/credit card. (The site says payments are secure and not stored on their servers.)
   
2. Processing: The transaction is instant; the site processes payment through its gateway. (As noted, PayPal payments appear under a third-party name.)
   
3. Delivery: Immediately after payment, the site emails you a download link. Some FAQ help suggests checking spam if you don’t see it.
   
4. Copy of the Book: The email link contains the full ebook (usually a PDF). According to the site and users, this PDF is “original,” permanent, and DRM-free.
   

What it offers: All titles are academic textbooks or similar. The site does not rent books; it sells you a copy at that flat fee. There is no return or trial period for digital downloads (see Refund policy). Customer support is via email only (service@ebooksbasic.com), and the site advertises a fast response (within ~18 hours).

User Reviews and Online Reputation

• Trustpilot: eBooks Basic has 38 reviews on Trustpilot with an overall 4.5/5 star rating. Most reviewers are positive. For example, one 5-star reviewer wrote: “I received the PDF download link instantly after purchase… you get permanent ownership of the book”. Another said the purchase was “fast and easy” and that the PDF “includes the whole book, and the pages are very clear.” Many reviews highlight the huge savings (one mentioned paying $30 instead of a $600 Amazon price) and rapid delivery. In short, on Trustpilot, customers report smooth transactions and good product quality.
  
• Reddit and forums: On Reddit’s r/Scams and r/college threads, users report mixed experiences. Several students confirmed they got their ebook files without issue. One said the site sent him three emails (order confirmation, PayPal receipt, download link) and he “got the actual book exactly what I wanted”, concluding “not a scam as far as getting the book”. Another noted he’d waited months with no problems and called it “working fine… safe”. On the other hand, a few Redditors raised concerns. One buyer reported strange PayPal details (again “Nguyen Khac Ban”) but still received the book, warning to be cautious with payment info. Another user controversially claimed that after ordering a PDF, she later saw unauthorized charges on her credit card. (It’s unclear if the site caused that fraud or if it was a coincidence.)
  
• Review aggregators: An independent review site notes that eBooks Basic “generally has positive feedback”, calling the service “a great way to save students from debt,” but also flags downsides. It lists pros (affordable pricing, quick delivery) and cons (uniform $30 pricing, only email contact, payment redirection, strict refund policy). The site summary says eBooks Basic is “generally considered legit but requires caution due to some negative reviews and operational quirks.”
  

In summary, genuine users report that *the service delivers what it promises (a PDF textbook) and often express satisfaction. However, the overwhelmingly positive user ratings must be weighed against these warning signs. Most customers seem to get their files, but mention the bargain-like price and odd payment details.

Red Flags and Complaints

• Uniform pricing: Charging $30 per book, regardless of title or publisher, is very unusual. Reviewers point out this “uniform pricing” for all ebooks as a red flag. Legitimate textbook retailers rarely use a flat-fee model for diverse titles.
  
• Contact info: eBooks Basic provides no physical address or phone number on its site – only an email address. It claims to be “Society Ltd” but gives no verifiable company details. Reviewers note the lack of contact information (no business address, only email). This opaque setup is typical of sketchy operations.
  
• Payment ambiguity: As mentioned, payments show up under another person’s name. One user noted that the PayPal transaction listed a Vietnamese individual. The review site also mentions “payment redirection” – i.e., money ending up on an unrelated site or account. This obscurity makes it hard to know who legally received your payment.
  
• Pirated content: Possibly the biggest issue is legality. Several Reddit commenters suspect eBook Basic is selling pirated copies. One wrote bluntly that he believes “the scanned book was pirated”. The site’s DMCA policy is essentially boilerplate, but with no apparent publishing rights. The combination of flat-low prices and promises of original PDFs strongly implies these are unauthorized scans. In short, eBooks Basic appears to be an underground reseller of copyrighted ebooks – a scam on authors/publishers.
  
• No refunds: The official refund policy explicitly bars any cancellations for digital goods. Once you pay, you are stuck with what you get. Users confirm it is very hard to get a return or refund. One Trustpilot reviewer pleaded for help returning a book, saying they “tried to find a contact or email for a month” with no luck. The review site cautions that the return/refund rules are “difficult”.
  
• Customer complaints: Aside from refunds, one repeated complaint is about credit-card fraud. At least one buyer reported later seeing unauthorized charges after using the site. Even if this was coincidental, it fuels suspicion that payment details may not be handled securely.
  

In summary, the red flags center on business ethics and transparency. The site’s practices (flat pricing, hidden identity, opaque payments, no refunds) and the likelihood of illegal ebook distribution all point to risk. Even if a buyer technically “gets the goods,” they are participating in a dubious scheme.

Also Read: Is Coverage Professor Legit?

Trust Signals and Security Assessment

• Domain & age: The domain ebooksbasic.com was registered on Dec 21, 2022, so it’s about 2½ years old. Scamadviser notes the age is a bit reassuring (it’s not brand-new), but also warns that age alone isn’t proof of legitimacy. The registrar is NameCheap (common but known for lax verification). WHOIS details are privacy-protected, so no owner info is public. According to traffic-rank data, this site has a very low visit count, typical of a small or niche operation.
  
• SSL security: The site uses HTTPS with a valid certificate. Scamadviser confirms a “valid SSL certificate” but notes it is only domain-validated (DV). A DV SSL is standard and shows basic encryption (good for protecting your data in transit), but any site, including scams, can get one. In short, your connection to the site is encrypted, but that alone doesn’t prove trustworthiness.
  
• Hosting: The site is hosted via Cloudflare in the US. This just means it uses a common CDN and doesn’t indicate the location of the actual operators.
  
• Policies: The site’s Privacy Policy and FAQ contain generic claims: they say they “never share” your data and don’t store payment info. These are standard assurances with no real independent verification. The refund policy clearly states that digital purchases cannot be canceled, which is honest but unfavorable to customers. Crucially, no public audit or license is shown – e.g., there’s no sign of publisher permissions, no business accreditation or reviews outside of a few platforms.
  
• Ownership transparency: The only company name shown is “Ebooks Basic Society Ltd” (in the footer). There is no address or registration number given. On Trustpilot, the owners list a US street address (a residential-looking location), but that may be fictitious. Review aggregators explicitly call out the “lack of contact information” as a con. In other words, there is no verifiable business identity – a serious trust concern.
  

Summary of trust signals: While some technical checks (SSL, site age) are okay, most indicators are neutral or negative. Key information is missing (who runs it, where they are registered), and the business model (flat pricing, no accountability) fails standard scrutiny. Given the evidence, eBooks Basic does not present the typical trust marks of a legitimate retailer.

Technical Scoring Breakdown for eBooksBasic.com

Total Score: 52/100 – Risky Platform

Final Verdict: Is eBook Basics Legit or a Scam?

After this investigation, our conclusion is that eBooks Basic is not a trustworthy, legitimate retailer. Technically, it often delivers the ebook files it promises, so it doesn’t seem to steal money outright. Many students report that they did receive their PDFs (and quickly). 

However, the service is essentially a gray-market operation. It appears to distribute unauthorized copies of textbooks at a suspiciously low flat price. Combined with its opaque ownership, odd payment processing, and almost non-existent support/refund process, eBooks Basic fails basic credibility tests.

In our view, eBooks Basic behaves more like a scammy pirate ebook site than a legitimate bookstore. It may not vanish after payment (so in that sense it “works”), but it also has no legal authorization to sell these books. Buying from it could expose you to risks, including legal/ethical issues and potential payment fraud. The few “red flags” (see above) outweigh the convenience and price.

Verdict: We do not recommend using eBooks Basic. It falls short of being a legitimate e-textbook provider. If you need textbooks, it’s safer to use official channels (college bookstores, publisher platforms, libraries, or vetted ebook sellers). eBooks Basic is essentially a dicey, unverified reseller. Approach with extreme caution – if at all – because its legitimacy is highly questionable. In short, eBooks Basic is closer to a scam in spirit than a bona fide retailer, even if it technically fulfills orders.