You'll have to purchase italki Credits (ITC), which are virtual currency, from italki.com. italki Credits are used to pay for foreign language tutoring services rendered on italki.com. Then when you have completed a lesson with a Teacher, italki.com will then transfer the ITC to the Teacher's account. (Refer to Student Guide) If you trust italki.com then there is no problem as all payments are through them. In fact, many members here have already benefited from the tutoring services. You may ask any members if they have been cheated, just to be sure. Happy Learning!

First of all you will need to buy some italki credits. After you have done this find a teacher you want to take classes from and use the online booking system to book a class with that teacher. Most teachers offer a trial half hour lesson cheaper than a normal lesson. The system will show you what times and days the teacher is available. Once the teacher has confirmed they accept the request, you meet with them on Skype. If you are worried about connection quality you may like to avoid busy times, though in my experience connection is very good on skype most of the time. If connection problems do cause a problem (and this can happen as its not a normal phone line） and the lesson is badly affected, most teachers will agree to reschedule the lesson. It is not possible for a teacher to cheat you as you must return to italki after the class and confirm that the lesson took place. Only after have you done this will italki release the credits to the teacher. If the teacher does not attend and has not asked to change the lesson time, you have an option that says the teacher did not attend, you can then ask the teacher to rebook the lesson or have italki return your credits. Either way your money is safe.

I have not been on italki long. But from what I can tell, people are not here to cheat anyone. I think there are only or mainly people here wanting to provide a fun educational experience. The website I would also trust. It seems like buying credits is just like buying anything else with a card. Whenever you buy something on the internet it is a good idea to not do this in a public place. Use a server that is secure. This means one you or someone you know ons it- and it has a passcode to log on. This helps insure that your credit card number will not be captured or recorded by someone. Have Fun.