With lockdowns and other restrictions in place across many regions and countries around the world, the concept of ‘Black Friday’ looks to be an almost entirely online event this year. Furthermore, it seems many online retailers have been attempting to spread the focus of the holiday shopping deals across the month of November. This drawn out period can make some shoppers lackadaisical about online shopping safety.

Don’t Click That Link…

With the deluge of offers from a variety of online sources, it’s easy to click links that lead to fake websites that are offering products and services that look legitimate. Doing this from a personal device is dangerous enough for the individual and their family, but with so many of us working from home, it’s likely many will be using work devices, increasing the potential damage significantly.

Beware of that too-good-to-be-true deal…

It’s hard to resist a bargain, and online shoppers will face no shortage of offers, whether for next-generation gaming consoles or the newest iPhones. With traditional retailers facing shortages for the most sought after items, unwary shoppers are vulnerable to less reputable sources and can easily expose themselves to online scams on insecure websites.

Stay vigilant, do your homework…

As such, it’s important for shoppers to be more vigilant than ever about malicious online activity driven by the cybercriminals who have remained highly active throughout the pandemic. To avoid falling victim, online shoppers should be extra wary of emails that evoke emotions like fear or curiosity, or urge you to act quickly. Deals that seem too good to be true typically are, so make sure to stay observant and compare prices across other businesses. Similarly, bad actors spoof pretty consistently spoof emails so that they “appear” to come from places where you might regularly shop/visit web sites. So, never click on links directly from an retailers email to yourself – rather visit the site and log into your account that way if needed.

In a perfect world, we will never click on a link from a suspicious sender. But if you do end up on a website and you want to be sure, click on the padlock in the browser bar and then view the digital certificate to verify that the website has a valid owner – a basic best practices that everyone should follow no matter the season.

If you suspect you’ve been victimized by a scam this holiday season, contact your financial institution immediately and contact local law enforcement.