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The holidays are a time when people are especially vulnerable to scams. People have their guard down because they are so busy. Criminals take advantage of this by running different scams. Let’s review Google’s five top scams circulating this holiday season and how to defeat them.
E-Gift Card Scams
The holiday season is in full swing as are gift card and prize scams. Scammers will try to social engineer you. They’ll convince you to buy them a gift card, it’s urgent and they need it done right away! Scammers often ask for specific gift cards and may ask you to get them from different retailers. Prize frauds offer the chance at incredible rewards if you give them your credit card info. If someone claims to be your friend sent you an email asking for this, contact them another way. Be sure it’s a legitimate request for a gift card or money before you pay. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Charities
Legitimate charities seek your donations at the end of the year. It’s beneficial for them, for your taxes, and makes you feel good. Scammers are aware of this, and their phishing campaigns are in high gear. This hurts not only the people that fall for the scam, but the charities as well. Scammers will send links directing you to send money to them, not the real charity. Go to the charity’s website instead and make a donation there.
Demographic Targeting
When placing online orders, you’re filling out a lot of personal information. Cybercriminals take advantage of this by targeting you. They use your personal information to make their fraud seem real. For example, you receive an email that appears to be from your child’s school. It’s an end of the year fundraiser asking for donations, all you need to do is click on the link.
The link takes you not to the school, but to the bad actor’s website. They harvest your sensitive info such as credit card numbers or SSN. These types of scams are difficult to identify as they seem so personalized. If you are aware of the threats and understand what to look for, you can protect yourself against them.
Subscription Scams
Scammers use our distraction to their advantage when it comes to renewals. We don’t remember when we purchased that magazine subscription. When did we sign up for HBO Max? Who can keep track of all that? The bad guys send phishing emails saying you need to click here to renew your subscription now. You don’t want it to run out, so you click. The click alone may install malware, or it leads you to another site where they harvest your info. Look close at the sender’s email address and check out the link. When in doubt, go straight to the vendor’s website instead.
Crypto Scams
Cryptocurrency-based scams are at their peak during times of high crypto usage. Often, bad actors use a crypto wallet to collect payment. They threaten victims if they don’t receive funds, using urgency and fear to motivate you to pay. Spam filters catch many of these, sending a warning about this type of email. It’s still important to know how to spot these on your own. Key things that signal fraud include typos, strange email addresses, and demands for payment.
No matter how busy you are, you can’t let your guard down. Protect yourself and your loved ones from cybercrime this holiday season.
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