It is time for the annual tradition of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, with shoppers frantically competing to snag the best deals ahead of the busy holiday shopping season.
However, the major sales events also provide prime opportunities for cybercriminals, warned Michael Dinich, the founder of the personal finance site Wealth of Geeks.
“Fraudsters are becoming increasingly clever as technology evolves, and during this busy shopping period, it provides the perfect opportunities to exploit the increased volume of transactions and potentially catch shoppers off guard,” Dinich said in a statement.
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Here are some of the most common scams to watch out for over the shopping season.
Urgent requests for updated billing information
Scammers will sometimes email shoppers claiming their billing information is incorrect and urgently needs to be updated, in an effort to get them to enter their bank details into a fake website.
Instead, shoppers should contact the retailer directly to ensure they are receiving legitimate information, Wealth of Geeks advised.
Fake websites with deals on popular products
As shoppers search for popular items on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, fake websites will sometimes advertise deals on products that are ultimately illegitimate, tricking shoppers into paying for items they will never receive and exposing their payment information.
Wealth of Geeks suggested shoppers confirm the legitimacy of products and sellers through the Better Business Bureau.
Phishing emails
Like the rest of the year, shoppers looking to score deals this weekend should beware of phishing emails, which seek to trick them into disclosing sensitive information through malicious links.
Fake package tracking notifications
Scammers will sometimes send fake package tracking notifications via an email attachment or link, which can be used to infect shoppers’ devices with malware or direct them to phishing websites.
Wealth of Geeks noted legitimate retailers will not send tracking numbers through an email attachment and urged shoppers to check tracking information through a seller’s website instead.
Instant messages with links to supposedly great deals
Shoppers should be suspicious of direct messages that contain links to supposedly great deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Wealth of Geeks warned.
Scammers will often imitate URLs to retailers’ websites to get shoppers to click links that can expose their devices to malware.
Instead, shoppers should go directly to a retailer’s website to confirm they in fact are offering a deal, according to Wealth of Geeks.
Fake charities
Following the busy shopping weekend, many Americans also participate in Giving Tuesday. However, scammers sometimes attempt to deceive well-meaning efforts to give with fake charities.
Wealth of Geeks said shoppers typically can spot fake charities through their payment methods because false ones often only accept gift cards, wire transfers and cryptocurrency.
Fake social media accounts
Scammers sometimes impersonate social media profiles to trick shoppers into offering their personal information or buying counterfeit goods.
Shoppers should check for verified social media accounts that have larger followings before clicking on a profile, Wealth of Geeks advised.
Misleading reviews secured through ‘review exchange’ clubs
Sellers sometimes participate in “review exchange” clubs, offering goods in return for generous and often misleading reviews of their products on sites like Amazon, according to Wealth of Geeks.
To find more accurate reviews, shoppers should compare reviews across several official retailers.
Unauthorized sellers
Amid the weekend’s sales, shoppers should beware of unauthorized sellers who may not properly display, package, handle or ship products correctly, which can make it more difficult to make returns or exchanges.
Empty, stolen gift cards
Given the popularity of gift cards during the holiday season, scammers sometimes attempt to trick shoppers into purchasing empty or stolen gift cards.
Wealth of Geeks suggests shoppers only purchase gift cards from retailers’ official stores or websites.