‘Tis the season for holiday shopping — and, unfortunately, holiday scams. As retailers gear up for their busiest time of year and shoppers get ready to tick items off their gift lists, cybercriminals are preparing to take advantage of another busy holiday shopping season by ramping up cyberattacks designed to steal consumers’ personal information and/or trick them into sending money.

To make matters worse, shoppers may be more likely to have their guard down this time of year. Not only do cybercriminals expect employees and consumers to be too distracted during the holidays to recognize scam emails and imposter websites, but consumers themselves may be more likely to risk their cybersecurity while hunting for deals. That willingness to play fast and loose with cybersecurity could be even more pronounced this year, as holiday shoppers feel the pinch of inflation and cost-cutting pressures.

Luckily, falling victim to a holiday shopping scam doesn’t have to be an inevitability. Read on to learn some simple tips for how to spot holiday scams and help avoid identity theft while shopping for the perfect gift.

5 tips to help avoid holiday scams

1.Practice good cybersecurity hygiene

Smart cybersecurity behaviors are important year-round, but they’re especially important during the holiday season, when scammers pull out all the stops with sophisticated phishing and malware cyberattacks. Be wary of suspicious emails, phone calls, texts, and other messages from potential scammers, and avoid clicking suspicious links or attachments. If in doubt, don’t reply, especially if the message comes from an unknown source and requests money or identifying information. For even more peace of mind, install and update anti-virus software on all your devices.

You should also be vigilant about protecting your passwords during the holiday shopping season. Use unique, complex passwords for each of your accounts, and enable two-factor authentication whenever possible, especially on financial accounts.

2. Beware of anything too good to be true

Everybody wants to find a good deal, especially during the holiday shopping season. But if a sale or offer appears too good to be true — for example, a shockingly low price on an in-demand item, like a gaming console — it usually is. Even if you get an order confirmation, you could end up not receiving your purchase.

3. Shop with reputable retailers

Whenever you’re holiday shopping online, you should make sure you’re dealing with an established, reputable vendor — especially if it’s a store you’ve never patronized before. Some scammers even go as far as to create malicious look-alike websites to try to trick you into entering your payment details.

Before you supply any information, check the website’s URL to make sure it’s secure and legitimate. If you don’t see a padlock symbol in the address bar or an “https” in the address, the site may not be trustworthy. Note the phone numbers and physical addresses of any vendors you plan to patronize in case there’s an issue with your transaction or bill.

When shopping on online marketplaces and auction sites be sure to check sellers’ reviews and feedback ratings for potential red flags. Having zero ratings and/or negative reviews could be a sign that the seller is illegitimate. Remember, you may not have the same purchase protections with an individual seller online that you would with an established brand.

4. Be careful how you pay

One simple trick to help avoid identity theft this holiday season is to make purchases with a credit card instead of a debit card whenever possible. Not only do credit card issuers tend to have stronger fraud detection features, but there are also laws that limit your personal liability for fraudulent credit card charges. You may not have the same level of protection for unauthorized purchases made via debit card. Plus, debit cards draw money directly from your bank account, so if you get cleaned out by a scammer, it could mean you don’t have the funds to cover bills and other necessities.

If you use a digital wallet opt for a credit card there too. Some credit card issuers even offer virtual credit card numbers — uniquely generated, anonymized numbers tied to a card you already have — for an added level of protection against holiday fraud.

Additionally, avoid using untraceable payment methods like cryptocurrency, wire transfers, or gift cards if you can. If a business requests you pay via one of these methods, consider it a major red flag of a potential holiday shopping scam.

5. Avoid public Wi-Fi

You may be tempted to do a bit of online holiday shopping while you’re out and about, but remember: a public Wi-Fi network is often an unsecured Wi-Fi network. That means cybercriminals could be watching your every move. Using a virtual private network (VPN) could help you stay more secure, but in general it’s best to avoid entering critical details like your login credentials, address, or payment information until you’re sure your connection is secure.

Common holiday scams to watch out for:

●      Gift card scams

In gift card scams, scammers attempt to get you to send money via gift card because gift cards are untraceable, and there’s no way to recover the money once the card details have been provided. About 1 in 4 people who report fraud to the FTC say they paid with a gift card, making it the most prevalent payment method for scams.

●      Temporary holiday job scams

Retailers often hire temporary seasonal workers to help during the busy holiday shopping season. Cybercriminals take advantage by posting scam job listings, often promising unrealistically high wages for mundane tasks, like answering phones.

●      Package delivery scams

E-commerce went up significantly thanks to the global pandemic, and many people have gotten used to tracking package deliveries online or via text messages. Cybercriminals have learned to take advantage of that behavior by sending delivery notification scam calls and texts, often including a fake tracking link that either installs malware on your device or leads you to a website to enter personal information.

●      Online gift exchange scams

Online gift exchange scams capitalize on the sense of general goodwill people feel during the holidays by inviting people on social media to exchange gifts with strangers. Victims provide their personal information, including names and addresses, when they sign up. Then, they buy and ship gifts and/or money to unknown recipients, hoping the gesture will be reciprocated.

●      Charity scams

Charity scams are another way to take advantage of the holiday spirit of giving. Scammers will often push their victims to make a hasty donation to a vague, sentimental cause in the hopes that the victims won’t stop to question their decision.

What to do if you think you’ve been scammed:

If you suspect you’ve fallen victim to a holiday scam, it’s important to act quickly to try to remedy the situation and mitigate any fallout:

1. Contact your bank and/or credit card company

The first thing to do if you think you’ve been scammed is to contact your bank and/or credit card issuer immediately. Explain that you’ve been a victim of fraud, then ask them to cancel the transaction and put your money back. Even if the payment has already gone through, don’t panic. You can dispute suspicious charges after the fact to try to recover your money.

2. File a report with the FTC, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), and your local police station

You can help others avoid becoming victims of the same holiday scam by reporting the fraud to the FTC and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Reports filed with the FTC are shared with over 3,000 law enforcers to help investigate and build cases against fraud, scams, and bad business practices.

3. Freeze your credit

If you think your personal information has been compromised because of a scam, freezing your credit reports can help prevent scammers from opening new accounts in your name. To do so, contact each of the three major credit bureaus individually, either by calling or going online. Freezing your credit is free and easy, and it doesn’t impact your credit score. To unfreeze, simply go to the credit bureau website and log in to the same account you used to freeze your credit. You may also be able to unfreeze your credit via phone or by mail if you provide certain identifying info. Unfreezing your credit typically takes effect within minutes, unless done by post.

Scammers are persistent, especially during the holiday season. They employ all kinds of social engineering techniques — including phishing emails, malware, ransomware, and more — to try to steal people’s personal info and trick them into sending money. To learn more about how social engineering works and how you can help avoid being scammed, check out our blog. 

What next?

It can be overwhelming to try to keep track of your personal data all by yourself. Luckily, PrivacyGuard offers credit monitoring and identity protection plans to help you monitor your information for signs of potential fraud during the holiday season and beyond.