Ahh, the holidays are upon us once more! My favorite time of year, from the music to the shopping to the food… Oh, and of course, those cheesy Hallmark movies, where they serve up some lighthearted conflict or mystery that is resolved and all wrapped up in a pretty little Christmas bow by the end. Unfortunately, in real life, the happy ending doesn’t always happen thanks to the actions of the Grinchiest among us. Yes, ‘tis the time of year that online holiday scams come out in full force!

Every year, as technology becomes more integrated into our daily lives, new and evolving scams continue to pop up, threatening us all. The only solution: Awareness. So, here are some of the top online holiday scams expected in 2024, according to those in-the-know. Many of these are regulars on the scene, showing up every year around this time. But a few are newer, and therefore more likely to throw someone unaware off track. So be sure to share this information with your staff, friends and family – yes, even your judgmental mother-in-law – to help keep everyone’s holidays happy and worry-free.

Social Media Shopping Scams

As online shopping continues to grow, fake shopping sites have become more sophisticated. In 2024, scammers are using social media ads to attract consumers to deals that often seem too good to pass up. Clicking the ad takes you to a website that looks professional and legitimate but is actually a fake online storefront set up purely to scam the unsuspecting. Payment results in you sharing credit card details and other personal data, a potential loss of money, and more often than not, a product that never shows up.

And here’s a new social media twist: If you’re reaching out to a business on social media for customer support, watch out for fake social media accounts pretending to be a customer service representative for a business.

The solution: Research online retailers thoroughly, checking reviews and verifying the website’s URL for signs of authenticity. Search for companies on the Better Business Bureau’s website: https://www.bbb.org/search. Only use secure payment methods and services that offer fraud protection. And for customer service, go to the business’s website and verify their official social media handles. (Or simply use the information on their site to reach out directly from there.)

Fake Charities

Scammers often take advantage of the season’s charitable spirit. In 2024, these scams have become more targeted, using email campaigns that appear to be from real nonprofits or mimicking well-known charity organizations with just slight name changes that can be easy to miss.

The solution: Only donate through well-established charity websites, and verify the legitimacy of any new charities through the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance. Be extremely cautious of unsolicited requests for donations, and always verify the authenticity of the requesting party before contributing. If the person making the request is legitimate, they’ll understand and accommodate these extra steps.

Gift Card Scams

Gift cards are popular holiday gifts, but they are also frequently used by fraudsters as an untraceable form of payment. In 2024, scammers continue to impersonate tech support agents, colleagues (including your boss!), government officials, or friends and family members, requesting payment in the form of gift cards. Another gift card scam promises free gift cards to “loyal customers”. In some of these emails, scammers impersonate legitimate companies. They may also use pop-up ads or send text messages with links telling you you’ve been selected at random as the winner of a prize. And all you need to do to get your reward is to send them some personal information. (Note that this same scam is used to promise other types of rewards, including all-expenses-paid vacations, cash or other products.)

The solution: First, be skeptical of anyone requesting payments in the form of gift cards. Legitimate businesses or agencies would never accept that form of payment. If the person making the request claims to be someone you know, verify it truly is them before taking any action. Second, if you have received an unsolicited email with “free” gift card (or other prize) offers, do not open it. Instead, mark it as spam or junk and delete it. If you have already opened the email, do not click on any links and delete it right away.

Bogus Travel Deals

The holiday season also brings an increase in travel, which scammers exploit with fake travel deals, bogus accommodation listings and fraudulent ticket sales. In 2024, scammers have begun using cloned websites of reputable travel agencies and online booking platforms to defraud travelers.

The solution: Use only well-known booking sites and verify the website’s URL carefully before making any payments. Also, be cautious of deals that are significantly cheaper than what you’d expect and ask for independent verification of listings. (You can find some good, more detailed advice here.)

Package Delivery Alerts

During the holidays, scammers ramp up the use of fake package delivery notifications to steal your information and money. Fraudulent delivery notices, sent via email or SMS, prompt users to click a link to reschedule a delivery or pay a delivery fee. The link leads to a page that asks for personal information or payment, which can result in identity theft or monetary loss.

The solution: First, if you are not expecting a delivery, be instantly suspicious! Contact the delivery service directly through their official website to verify any delivery issues. If the issue is legitimate, all the same information should be on a delivery company’s official website. So, if any action is needed, it can safely be performed there. And as always, avoid clicking on any links in texts or email messages if you are even the slightest bit unsure of the sender.

Fake refunds

The bad guys are counting on the fact that it’s challenging to remember everything you’ve purchased during the holiday season. This is where fake refund schemes come into play. Potential victims receive a text or email notifying them of a pending refund they can claim by clicking on a provided link. However, when the link is clicked, malware is installed on their device to steal their personal information.

The solution: You probably know what I’m going to say. Just don’t click that link! Report the text or email, delete it and move on.

Compromised Account Alerts

If you get an email or text message that there has been unusual or fraudulent activity on your bank account or another account, such as Amazon, Netflix, PayPal or Venmo, there’s an excellent chance it’s a scam. The links in these messages will take you to websites that ask for your account information, which scammers will use to access your account.

The solution: If you’re at all concerned that there might be suspicious activity on your account, contact the company or bank directly by calling the number on its website. Do NOT call a number provided to you in an email or text message, as you may simply end up talking to your scammer!

AI-Enhanced Fake Boss Requests

If you get a text message from your boss asking you to buy gift cards for clients or to send money through a payment app, there’s a particularly good chance it’s a scam. Your boss is an easy go-to for cybercriminals, as they know the fear of being reprimanded or losing a job is a great incentive to get you to act without thinking. Unfortunately, scammers are now taking advantage of AI to convincingly replicate voices in phone calls and images in video calls.

The solution: No matter how credible the request may seem, before taking any action, reach out directly to your boss through another contact method. If you fear embarrassment (if it really does turn out to be a legitimate request), just say you wanted to confirm the details of the request. Always better safe than sorry!

Gift Exchange Schemes

Every holiday season this scheme pops back up on social media sites. The older version was called “Secret Sister.” Newer versions of this scam revolve around exchanging bottles of wine or bourbon; another suggests purchasing $10 gifts online. Yet another twist asks you to submit your email to a list where participants get to pick a name and send money to strangers to “pay it forward.” There is even a twist about “Secret Santa Dog” where you buy a $10 gift for your “secret dog.” In all these versions, participants unwittingly share their personal information, along with those of their family members and friends, and are further tricked into buying and shipping gifts or money to unknown individuals. It’s also an illegal pyramid scheme.

The solution: Stick to the tried-and-true way of buying your gifts only from trustworthy businesses!

Free Holiday Apps

Apple’s App Store and Google Play list dozens of holiday-themed apps where children can video chat live with Santa, light the menorah, watch Santa feed live reindeer, track his sleigh on Christmas Eve, or relay their holiday wish lists. Unfortunately, these apps can sometimes contain more advertising than the apps you pay for. Worse still, free apps can also contain malware.

The solution: Review privacy policies to see what information they collect. And in general, be wary of free apps. Reading reviews can help, but if the app is so new it doesn’t have any (or many) reviews, your best bet is to avoid downloading it altogether.

Protect Yourself from Online Holiday Scams!

In this holiday season, don’t let your defenses slip and allow scammers to gain access to your personal and financial information. Here are a few other general steps you can take to protect yourself from holiday fraudsters:

• Avoid making purchases or entering personal information while using a public Wi-Fi network
• Keep all your devices, including your smartphone, updated with the latest version of your chosen virus protection software
• Turn on two-factor or multi-factor authentication for your accounts
• Keep a close eye on your financial activities and report fraud immediately (see below)
• Report, report, report! If it’s a suspicious-looking email message, report it (in Outlook, you can simply right-click on the message and choose “report”). If you get a scam text on your phone, report it to your carrier. (Both iOS and Androids make it easy to report junk within the text itself, alerting your carrier for you.) Report any suspicious calls or messages to local authorities or consumer protection agencies (see more on that below.)

If despite your best efforts you still find yourself the victim of online holiday fraud, don’t panic! There are steps you can take to minimize the impact.

What to Do if Fraud Happens to You

Despite all our best efforts, online holiday scams can still get to the best of us. So what to do now? The first step is damage control. Meticulously review your accounts and notify any corresponding financial institutions. This way, you can determine to what extent cybercriminals have penetrated your security measures. Following your review, consider filing a report with the local police. Next, contact any of the three credit bureaus — Experian, TransUnion, or Equifax — to put a security alert on your credit. Each bureau is legally obligated to notify the other two if they receive a request for a security alert. And finally, you can also take reporting holiday fraud one step further by reporting the crime to the FBI and Federal Trade Commission (FTC). You should also report scams to the Better Business Bureau’s “scam tracker” to help out others who are using their service for verification.