Scammers want your money or your personal information. The Christmas holiday season gives them plenty of opportunity to collect both. Recently, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) published the 12 top holiday scams that it has observed. A short summary of each follows. For more information about each, check out the link to the BBB posting below.
1.
Misleading Social Media Ads.
The BBB reports that this is the most reported scam on its Scam Tracker
service. Scammers have been using social media to pose as a small business with
items for sale or an offer of a free trial. People complain that they pay for
items that they never receive. Or they get charged for a “free trial” that they
never signed up for. Other complaints include receiving counterfeit products or
products different from what they ordered. BBB recommends checking out businesses before
doing business with them. You can look up businesses at www.BBB.org
or do a web search on the business name (business name with the word scam or complaints).
2.
Gift Exchanges.
The latest version of this scam is about exchanging bottles of wine. Another
version suggests purchasing $10 gifts online. And there is a version that encourages
you to add your email address to a list where participants pick a name and send
money to strangers to “pay it forward.” The gift exchange scams are a good way
to collect your personal information as well as the personal information of
your family and friends. And, the BBB points out, they are illegal pyramid
schemes.
3.
Holiday Apps.
Holiday apps offer experiences such as live video chats with Santa for
children, lighting a menorah, watching Santa feed live reindeer, tracking Santa’s
sleigh on Christmas Eve, or sending holiday wish lists to Santa. Scammers can set
up apps to collect your personal information or make offers to take your money.
Review app privacy policies. Free apps can contain more advertising than apps
that require a fee. Also, be wary of free apps since they can contain malware.
4.
Alerts About Compromised Accounts.
Scammers often send text messages, emails, or make phone calls posing as a bank,
Amazon, Paypal, etc. claiming that they have detected suspicious activity on
your account. You are encouraged to contact the business by clicking on a link
or calling an included number. DO NOT click on the included link or call the
phone number. If you want to check out the claim, call the business by looking
up their number with a web search, on a bill or statement, or on the back of its
credit/debit card.
5.
Free Gift Cards.
Scammers send phishing emails claiming that you are eligible for free gift
cards or have been selected to receive free gift cards. All you have to do is
to give them some of your personal information. The scammers often impersonate
legitimate businesses such as Starbucks. They also use pop-up ads and text
messages. The best approach is to ignore unsolicited emails or text such as
this.
6.
Temporary Holiday Jobs.
Many businesses are looking for holiday workers. However, scammers use the lure
of a temporary holiday job to collect personal information or to steal your
money. Be wary of any job offer that seems too good to be true, or that charges
you to apply for the job.
7.
Look-alike
Websites. Scammers often impersonate legitimate businesses and governmental
agencies. They can build a website that looks just like a real company’s
website or send a phishing email that looks like it is from an authentic business.
When navigating to a company’s website, be sure to check out the web address to
be sure it is authentic. Before clicking on any links in an email, hover your
cursor over the link to see the real web address of the link.
8.
Fake Charities.
The holidays are a prime time for scammers to impersonate charities as we all
think about giving to those in need. The BBB recommends avoiding quick decisions
to give to any charity. It also recommends that you check out a charity before
giving. You can look up charities at the BBB’s www.give.org
website or the Washington State Secretary of State’s Corporations and Charities
Division’s website- https://ccfs.sos.wa.gov/#/.
9.
Fake Shipping Notifications.
With the high traffic of packages being shipped in this holiday season,
scammers are sending out phishing emails and text messages claiming that there
is a problem with your shipment and to clear it up you need to click on the
link. Instead of clicking on the link in the email or text message, go directly
to the web site of the shipper.
10. Pop
Up Holiday Virtual Events. Many holiday markets or craft fairs
have migrated online. Scammers create fake events or impersonate real events with
fake web pages, social media posts, and emails. They may charge admission for
what is normally a free event. Check any web addresses for their legitimacy. If
you see an event that used to be free charging admission, ask the real-life organizer
if they are really charging a fee.
11. Top
Holiday Wishlist Items. With the current supply chain
problems, highly popular gifts will be more difficult to find. Scammers take
advantage of the situation by claiming they have scarce gifts and even may
claim to charge a price that is too good to be true.
12. Puppy
Scams. Puppies were popular during the pandemic. And puppy
scams were just a popular with fraudsters. Be sure that you can see the
prospective pet in person before buying.
Better Business Bureau:
https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/23497-the-naughty-list-bbbs-12-scams-of-christmas
https://www.bbb.org/article/scams/21097-scam-alert-tracking-code-trick-costs-online-shoppers
Seattle Times:
Washington State Secretary of State:
https://www.sos.wa.gov/charities/
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