- Research has found that Christmas parcel scams have doubled compared to previous years.
- To date, more than 33,500 phishing attacks have occurred.
- Beware of courier scams, fake gifts and fake retail websites.
The holiday season is always a great opportunity for scammers to take advantage of the current sales season and increase legitimate ad volume and overall purchase intent. But this year it gained momentum due to Artificial Intelligence.
In the past, scammers had to spend time and effort creating credible phishing attacks or fake web pages, and deceiving unsuspecting Internet users required a certain level of skill. But now criminals only need artificial intelligence.
reach a new checkpoint it unites Already this Christmas season, there have been more than 33,500 holiday-themed phishing attacks, and more than 10,000 seasonal social media ads have been flagged as suspicious.
What should I look for?
Researchers identified three types of fraud that were particularly common at the time. Phishing attacks, fake retail websites, social media giveaways and more. Although AI has improved the effectiveness of each of these attacks, there is still no way to detect fraudulent activity.
In recent years, most of us have faced parcel fraud. And yes, it is true. I almost got caught in some scams. Researchers found that fraud cases have doubled since last year. so be careful.
This is usually a fake text message or email from a number pretending to be Royal Mail, FedEx, UPS, etc., telling you that you have forgotten your package and need to provide your details to the delivery company. It provides a link that can ultimately lead to credential theft and payment fraud.
Similarly, the number of fake retail sites promoting big ‘Christmas sales’ is also increasing, often using AI-powered chat assistants to disguise as genuine customer service. They tempt you to take advantage of ongoing transactions and ultimately steal your payment information and personal data.
Similarly, around the holidays, “sweepstakes” are being circulated on social media, promising attractive prizes, but requiring winners (all of them) to pay exorbitant “delivery fees” with their card details.
stay safe
The secret to protecting yourself from them is to understand them, be careful, and be wary of the unexpected and the incredibly good.
Most of us will order a package at some point, so please check for communications from your authorized retailer regarding order tracking and progress. Do not click on links sent in text messages.
Be careful if you find any expensive item on any website. Check out special offers on our individual websites. If you can’t find it, it may be a fake. Don’t sign up for social media ads directly on a retailer’s website.
Present it As is always the case with birthdays, check the age of the account offering the prize. Items less than 180 days old are probably not genuine. Additionally, if you are able to send the item as a prize, you will likely be able to afford the shipping costs.
