Many Australians are still caught in the grip of Black Friday sales, a traditionally US phenomenon that’s exploded down under. What was once a single-day sale is now a days-long event called Cyber Week. For those who ‘celebrate’, today is Cyber Monday. The lines between these sales and the Christmas shopping period have become blurred, if not invisible. But whether your purchases today are part of Black Friday sales or Christmas shopping, one constant remains: scammers.
Scammers love this period, and few of them would care what title it’s given. For them, the best thing is that it provides another chance to fleece unsuspecting customers of their hard-earned money. The risk is real, and it has prompted the ACCC’s National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC) to issue a public statement urging vigilance.
The month leading up to Christmas can be a boon for scammers for a couple of reasons. First, the sheer volume of sales goes through the roof, providing more ‘fish in the sea’ than most other periods.
Second, the pressure of Christmas shopping can sometimes expose the vulnerabilities of buyers. This can happen when shoppers are running low on time and need to buy some last-minute gifts. Alternatively, it might be because a certain present is hard to find. Or perhaps they’re simply hoping for a bargain price. In some cases it might be a combination of all three.
’Tis the season to be wary of scammers
By far the most common way these malicious scams are perpetrated is online. While you might still feel like you’re being robbed blind when you buy your kids’ Christmas presents from a leading department store, you’ll at least have the presents.
The same thing should happen if you buy online, of course. But it doesn’t always turn out that way. Scammers set up websites advertising the item you’re after, take your money and then do nothing. That’s because their website is nothing but a façade.
Scammers will tailor websites to appeal to the vulnerabilities outlined above.
Too busy to visit stores in person? No problem, buy it online here!
Can’t find the present little Johnny or Jenny put on their Christmas list? We’ve got it!
Want to get them that special present but it’s too expensive? We’ve got it at half the price!
The closer it gets to Christmas, the more attractive these offers look. While the vast majority of humans can’t believe people can take advantage of these vulnerabilities so cruelly, they do. For scammers, conscience plays no part.
But wait, there’s more
Some scammers will go an extra step and set up websites purporting to be well-known retailers. Just remember, all the logos and pictures you see online can be easily saved and reused elsewhere. It’s entirely illegal, of course, but so is everything else the scammers are doing.
So if you think you’re shopping online through say Myer or Kmart, look carefully at the web address (URL) you’re on. If you don’t see the name of the retailer, that’s a huge red flag. Even if you think you do, care is still vital. Does that URL say ‘kmart’ or ‘knart’? Is that word ‘myer’ or ‘meyer’? Scammers will often use very similar names to actual retailers to try to fool you. And because URLs are usually long and use small text, slight variations are easy to miss.
Scammers aren’t just for Christmas
While peak season for scammers may not have begun just yet, do not be fooled. The NASC has uncovered and acted on many online scammers recently, and finds more each day. In fact, of the fraudulent or malicious websites taken down in the past three months, online shopping scams accounted for 50 per cent of them.
ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe has urged vigilance.
“This is a particularly busy shopping period,” Ms Lowe said, referring to the Black Friday sales and the weeks ahead. “Christmas and the annual Boxing Day sales are just around the corner – and everyone loves a bargain. I would remind everyone to be extra wary of online shopping scams.”
Ms Lowe then added one final piece of advice that remains valid all year round: “If you are offered a product or service at a price that seems too good to be true, then it probably is.”
Do you get caught up in the sales at this time of year? Do you keep an eye out for scammers? Let us know via the comments section below.
Also read: Government wants $50m fines for social media and telcos over scams
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