Some thoughts
1) Buy from reputable sellers - on Ebay or otherwise
2) Take some time to get educated about what are some of the ways the unscrupulous alter cards - there are some great threads on the boards here about that
3) Handle a lot of cards - literally - by handling a lot of real ones, many of the bad alterations will stick out like a sore thumb.
4) When it comes to the pricier cards - invest in a black light, a loupe and a good ruler or caliper. Could also consider going graded for the pricier cards - far from a perfect solution as they have made plenty of mistakes, but a pretty large degree of assurance compared to a un/less educated opinion.
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