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Scammers prey on Black Friday shoppers – don’t fall for fake online stores

Umito November 7, 2024

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the perfect time for bargains and millions of people will be taking advantage of fantastic deals this year, including many great deals. Black Friday VPN deals – but don’t let that surprise you. Research conducted by NordVPN, one of the best VPNsfound a 35% increase in consumer attempts to visit fake stores in October compared to September, and this number is expected to increase during the shopping fever of Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Statistics from Nord’s Threat Protection Pro revealed that the number of blocked attempts to access fake stores increased from 9.9 million in September to 13.4 million in October, with an average of 381,000 blocked attempts per day.

According to a recent YouGov survey36% of Americans plan to shop on Black Friday, and 34% are looking for deals on Cyber Monday. A study conducted by NordVPN in 2023 showed that one in four Americans who were scammed while shopping were scammed during sales events such as Black Friday. This represents a total of 34 million people.

“Cybercriminals use AI-based tools to quickly, easily and efficiently create fake stores and increase their abilities to scam people looking for the best deals,” explains Adrianus Warmenhoven, cybersecurity advisor at NordVPN. “Sometimes criminals create fake stores to collect payment card details and personal information, but this sometimes results in direct financial losses: customers pay for products they never receive or sometimes only get the photo of the products they purchased.”

Will you be able to recognize fake stores?

Fake online stores are particularly dangerous because they can be very convincing. But is there a way to spot these identity thefts? Cybersecurity experts warn that the growing wave of professionally created websites could prompt even more people to give away their personal data or fall for a scam by exchanging money for a nonexistent product. While some pages are developed as original stores, some try to deceive people by pretending to be well-known brands.

A common trick used by cybercriminals is to subtly change the domain name of the website. For example, they might replace “Amazon” with “Armazon,” a change you might very easily not notice. The use of short URLs is common, often used to hide the actual web address. There are various other ways to fool unsuspecting customers, with common tactics such as unrealistic and “too good to be true” discounts. The sites seem to offer unbeatable prices but disappear as soon as payment is made. Always browse multiple sites and if one offer is significantly cheaper than all the others, it’s worth checking its legitimacy.

Cartoon cybercriminal stealing products online

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Fake sites often fail to deliver the product they advertise. Your items may arrive broken, be cheap or fake, or even not arrive at all, leaving you with no way to return them or get your money back. Fake reviews are a quick and easy way for scammers to lure you in. A range of positive reviews may seem interesting, but it’s important to look a little deeper. Are the reviews vague and lacking in detail? If so, they probably aren’t real. No negative reviews are also a gift, because scammers won’t want you to see them. A common red flag occurs when a very young site receives an unusually high number of reviews. Scammers use this tactic to quickly build trust and lure unsuspecting victims.

Phishing is a well-established tactic used by scammers. They send emails or text messages asking you to enter your personal information or access fraudulent stores. They may look like real brands or trusted services like your bank, but they’re actually a way for criminals to steal your data. Always be vigilant if you receive one of these messages and never enter your information unless you are 100% sure it is legitimate. A lot of the most secure VPNs offer some form of threat protection, identity defense, or anti-phishing features in their plans.

There are several ways to avoid falling victim to scams this Black Friday and in the future. VPNs, as well as best antivirus softwareare a great way to protect your privacy and security online and many of the best providers include cybersecurity tools such as ad and malware blockers, password managersor even cyber insurance in their most premium packages. For example, NordVPN offers Protection against professional threats and ExpressVPN offers Identity Defender.

Tools like these can identify dangerous and suspicious sites, warning you of their danger before you access them. Our guides can help you explore the features offered by different VPNs so you can find the one that’s right for you.

Padlock on electronic shield with dark blue background

(Image credit: Getty Images)

VPNs are a fantastic way to protect yourself and your data online, but they’re not a silver bullet. Human error is one of the leading causes of data breaches and you need to be aware of all the dangers it poses. Be skeptical of sites, never access or submit anything you are not 100% sure of. Avoid unusual payment methods, such as cryptocurrencies or wire transfers, as they are harder to track and therefore favored by fraudsters.

Although some may be, the websites used by scammers are not always of good quality. Look for typos or grammatical errors, sloppy writing and poor quality images, these are all clues of a fake website.

You can also search for company contact details. Real companies will almost always have an email address or phone number where you can contact them and will have access to their office location and city. This is all normally found in the “About” or “Contact” sections of the website. Although scammers can replicate it, if a company’s website doesn’t have this information, it’s a red flag.

Remember to always read a company’s privacy policies and terms of service so you understand what happens to your data and where it goes. Once you consent to data collection or disclose personal information, VPNs can do little to protect you. Finally, check website domains, SSL certificates and you can even use URL checker tools to assess the validity of the website you are visiting.

Following these steps, staying vigilant, and using tools like VPNs and malware blockers can help you protect your data and personal information this shopping season.

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Scammers prey on Black Friday shoppers – don’t fall for fake online stores

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