Retailers aren't allowed (by credit card companies) to bill your card until the item has shipped. If you find a store is doing that, for ANY reason, you should contact your issuing bank, and challenge the charge. After multiple people do that, the credit card company will see the misbehavior isn't just a one-off billing mistake, and will revoke their license. The company will no long be able to accept credit card payments.

Personally, I don't buy from random websites I know nothing about... I usually find retailers via Froogle, Pricewatch, or similar trusted aggregator, which means I have someone to complain to and can at the very least get them delisted if they are dishonest.

Since this story is just one person's anecdote, with no link to a source, don't expect it to ever get published the front-page.