Scammers are using holiday-themed scams and phishing messages to steal personal data
With Black Friday around the corner, and Christmas not too far behind, scammers are using holiday-themed scams and phishing messages to steal the personal data of unsuspecting shoppers. Bitdefender’s analysts looked at global volumes of spam from October 26 to November 9, uncovering spam campaigns and phishing scams targeting online users as peak holiday shopping approaches.
Key findings include:
- Starting on Nov. 7, Bitdefender saw a dramatic spike in Black Friday spam at 19 per cent up from 1-6 per cent the previous weeks
- 56 per cent of all Black Friday spam was flagged as scams. Criminals are using popular brands (Ray Ban, Louis Vuitton, and others) as a lure to steal credentials including credit card numbers and are using cleverly crafted websites to appear as legitimate e-commerce stores
- QR Codes and surveys are being used to capture credentials, with consumers increasingly comfortable using QR Codes given the COVID-era check-in practices
Tags: BitdefenderScammers
