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Cyber Threat Intelligence: Beware of Holiday Shopping Scams

With holiday spending projected to reach $989 billion, more than half of Americans are reportedly worried about falling victim to prowling con artists.

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By: Lianna Albrizio

Associate Editor

With holiday spending projected to reach $989 billion, shoppers should be on high alert about scams, says Cyber Threat Intelligence at 360 Privacy.

The cybersecurity firm says with the merriment of holiday shopping season comes the dark side of bad actors on the prowl for personal information and using it for their own gain.

According to Chris Wingfield, senior vice president of Cyber Threat Intelligence at 360 Privacy, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are targets for con artists. A record 200.4 million shoppers participated in Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales in 2023 with holiday spending projected to reach $989 billion this season, per the National Retail Federation.

He said nearly half (48%) of US consumers report being targeted by a scam while holiday shopping online, according to the 2024 Norton Cyber Safety Insights Report. This year, more than half (53%) of Americans are worried about their safety when eyeing Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals.

The Cyber Threat Intelligence Program is a targeting program designed to proactively identify digital points of exploitation and provide tangible solutions for complex risks associated with executives, family offices and ultra-high net worth individuals.

Tips To Avert Scams

Wingfield urges shoppers to think twice before they double-tap on ads that seem too good to be true or discount phishing emails; fraudulent alerts regarding a “missed delivery or order confirmation; fraudulent URLs; deciphering the difference between https and http; being mindful of the information consumers give out; payment methods; virtual credit cards; identify fraud alerts; threshold alerts and more.

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