Overview

• The FBI has issued a warning about common holiday scams, including non-delivery, non-payment, auction fraud, and gift card fraud, which cost consumers over $480 million in 2023.
• Cybersecurity experts report an 89% surge in scam websites impersonating legitimate brands, with nearly 80% of shopping-related emails being fraudulent this season.
• Consumers are advised to verify website URLs, avoid suspicious links, and use secure payment methods like credit cards to reduce risk.
• Mobile shopping, expected to account for 53.2% of holiday online sales, poses heightened risks due to smaller screens and truncated URLs making scams harder to detect.
• Authorities recommend reporting scams immediately, freezing compromised accounts, and gathering evidence to mitigate losses and prevent further fraud.