Nov. 23 (UPI) — While you’re chowing down on Thanksgiving turkey this year, remember there’s someone out there looking to make a turkey out of you.
Scammers see the holiday season as prime time to part you from your money. And with advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, readily available, it’s easier than ever. Gone are the days when the average person could spot a scam from a mile away. Nowadays, it’s easier than ever to fall victim.
“Every year cybercriminals are getting more creative to take advantage of consumers, and this year is no different with the rise of AI,” Todd Conklin, with the U.S. Treasury Department, said. ‘Don’t be pressured to purchase an item or pay for a service quickly. Legitimate businesses and people will give you time to decide.”
It’s not just the Treasury Department issuing warnings. Both the public and private sectors are reminding consumers to take off the blinders.
A scam for everyone
Credit card company Visa said scammers work the hardest during the holidays, between November and January, when online and in-person shopping goes up and people are distracted. Visa’s hit list of favorites includes digital and ATM skimming (stealing credit card data from online stores or ATM machines) and phishing (fake emails or websites used to steal information), to name a few.
“Crooks prepare all year for the holiday shopping season, taking advantage of increased activity and consumers who let their guard down searching for the perfect gift,” Paul Fabara, Visa’s chief risk officer, said.
Amazon, as well, recently warned of an uptick in two types of scams: The first involves email attachments that warn shoppers their accounts will be suspended without immediate action. Once the shopper clicks the link, a fake website collects all sorts of personal data. The second has scammers calling, texting and emailing Prime members about bogus account issues that can ultimately lead to sensitive information being stolen.
“Coming into the holiday with big deals, they send out notices that there’s a problem and say contact us to straighten things out. Give us your credit card information or bank account info to verify it,” Scott Knapp, Amazon’s director of worldwide buyer risk prevention, told CBS MoneyWatch.
You’re (not) too smart to be scammed
For years, consumers have been hit with scams from all sides. Since so many of these scams are obviously fake — with ridiculous spelling errors, sketchy looking logos and questionable email addresses — consumers assume they’ll be able to sniff out a scam before they get taken.
In reality, 36% of Americans have fallen victim to an online shopping scam during the holiday season, a new McAfee study found. The software security company said a new phishing site is created every 11 seconds, and AI is making it harder than ever to tell real from fake.
McAfee said many Gen Z’ers and millennials trust online shopping as much as in-person but they’re also the most susceptible to holiday scams, with 49% and 65% respectively becoming victims during the holidays, compared to just 12% of those over 50.
“With advances in artificial intelligence making it easier to create compelling fake emails, malicious sites and text messages at scale, Americans are experiencing an onslaught of scams this festive season,” Roma Majumder, SVP of Product & Design at McAfee, said.
Other sneaky ways scammers are reaching victims during the holidays (and other times) include:
- Shipping status texts with dubious links
- Social media deals advertising wildly low prices
- Secret Santa pyramid schemes that require personal information
What can you do to protect yourself?
Really, there’s no magical elixir for avoiding scams during the holidays. Just remain as alert and aware as the rest of the year. A few other tips:
- Avoid public wi-fi for shopping
- Beware of deals that are too good to be true
- Lock down your personal information by freezing your credit
- Use a credit card rather than a debit card
- Don’t rely on caller ID
- Use two-factor authorization
And remember, “stay vigilant, be proactive, and respond quickly if you are targeted by a scammer or fraud,” Conklin, the deputy assistant secretary for the Treasury Department’s Office of Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection, said.
“If an online deal looks too good to be true, it likely is,” he added. “Take time to think, research, and talk to someone you trust,”
