Common Holiday Scams

Introduction

Holidays are a special time of year, whether it’s Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or any other celebration. These are usually times of enjoyment with friends and family, but it’s also a time where scammers and hackers try to socially engineer people. It’s a good excuse for them to try to get sensitive information or money from you under the guise of something related to these holidays.

Social engineering has become more advanced over the past few years, especially with the introduction of AI. There are a few common holiday scams that go around during these times, especially around Christmas and New Year’s. The normal security methods are still important in these situations, but they might seem more convincing around this time. Millions of people get scammed a year, but many of them could be avoided if a few key cybersecurity points are kept in mind.

What is Social Engineering?

To understand what to look for when it comes to scammers and hackers, you first have to know what they’re going to be doing. The want your sensitive information or access to your accounts, so they will employ methods to do that. Social engineering is when a bad actor tries to get this information through means of deception or manipulation. One of the most common forms of this is phishing.

They will use means of websites, emails, and various other methods to socially engineer you. They can scour the Internet and pick up publicly available information to impersonate or take advantage of a person or business. There are hundreds of tools available to these scammers, and most recently, artificial intelligence has been beefing up these methods.

Common Holiday Scams

Most scams happen around holidays, especially during the winter holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Regardless, these scams can happen at any time, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye out for them while on the Internet.

Free Gift Card

While some businesses will offer free gift cards, these are usually through a contest or through doing something for them. This includes buying a certain amount of gift cards or taking a survey. However, plenty of bad actors take advantage of this by offering their own free gift cards in the guise of other businesses. They will send a link through text message or email in hopes that you will fall for an easy click. Never click links that you don’t trust, especially if it promises free things.

Package Delivery

With many packages being delivered through holiday times, package delivery scams become more rampant. They’ve become more common as it is, but delivery companies won’t send you unsolicited texts. If you get a text or email that tells you that something is wrong with a package, it’s always a good idea to go to the seller’s website or the place where you bought it to check. Never call the number or click the link on these texts—you will be sent to the hacker’s domain, which can infect your device with malware.

Charity

Giving is a big part of the holidays, so charities will be out and about attempting to gather donations. However, with this, bad actors will attempt to do the same through fraudulent means. They will pose as charity organizers or workers, manipulating kind people who want to help the needy. While a text or email might seem legitimate, always be sure that you’re going to the correct website. If you’re donating online, make sure that your website starts with “https://”, which is a secure address.

Shopping Scams

Many sales will pop up during the holidays, enticing you to make purchases when it comes to gifts or food. It’s always a good idea to research the places that you’re buying from. If you’re not on Amazon or a big retail website, always be sure that you’re on a secure address. Some smaller shops may promise sales through social media or through special advertisements, but it’s always a good idea to read reviews and make sure that you’re safe.

Conclusion

Holidays are a wonderful time of the year. They are times to celebrate with friends and family, but it’s important to be safe as well. Cybersecurity should be considered during these special times, considering bad actors will attempt to scam or hack you through social engineering. They can pose as anyone and any business in an attempt to get your information or control of your accounts. Security awareness can be applied to most situations.

Always be wary of emails and texts that you may get during the holidays. Free gift cards, special sales, and various charity messages can lead to malicious websites. Attacks happen all over the place and holidays are when scammers are most active. Always be aware of your information and your Internet browsing and never click on an unknown link.